Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens Alternate
by Grand Admiral Harmon
Summary: *An alternate take on Star Wars VII* Thirty years have passed since Palpatine died and Vader was redeemed. Now a shadowy organization lashes out against the galaxy, Han and Leia's son rebels against the Jedi Order, and a young girl, abandoned on a desert world, gets the chance to leave.
1. Title Crawl and Prologue

**Note: I own nothing of Star Wars, except original ideas. Everything else, names and places are owned by Lucasfilm and Disney.**

 **Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens**

 **THE GALAXY IS AT PEACE!**

 **The GALACTIC EMPIRE is a shattered shell of its former glory and the NEW REPUBLIC Reigns supreme**

 **A new JEDI ORDER is on the rise, promising peace and justice too all.**

 **However, a new threat begins to raise its ugly head in the Unknown Regions.**

 **Yet the REPUBLIC SENATE and MILITARY do not take it seriously**

 **Despite the few voices of warning.**

 **LEIA ORGANA-SOLO makes one final attempt to appeal to the SENATE to investigate this threat.**

 **As she does this, her husband HAN SOLO travels the galaxy, and what he will discover may change the very course of the history of the galaxy…..**

 **Prologue**

A large Star Destroyer, larger than any of the old Empire slowed to a half-speed orbiting the harsh world below them. The world was a harsh orange hue, a swirling mass of heavy clouds obscuring the surface from view. On the night side, lightning storms lit entire portions of the otherwise ebony black.

Standing on the bridge of the Star Destroyer stood two men. One was fitted in a starch uniform, pressed so flatly to him that one would be forgiven to wonder how he even breathed. A scowl seemed seared to his stone-hard face. A face that had seen its shares of hardship and toil. His copper-hair was slicked back behind him, flat against his skull, making his forehead stand out even more than it already did in an already receding hairline.

The other man was just as still, clothed all in black. A black robe fell behind his sable clothes and the cowl of his robe was pulled up over his head, obscuring the black helmet from view of those who stood behind them. Had they seen the front of his helmet, they would be reminded of Darth Vader, one of the founders of the glorious New Order, better known as the Galactic Empire.

The Empire had surrendered decades ago to the New Republic. Within a year of Palpatine's death, his Grand Vizier, Mas Amedda had surrendered to the New Republic. This man, one of the architects of the greatest civilization the galaxy had ever known, had cowed and groveled before the filthy rebels. Now the Empire was a shell of it's former glory. It had once spanned two-thirds of the entire known galaxy. A million systems under it's rule. Now less than ten thousand acknowledged their rule.

Not these men who stood on the bridge of the Star Destroyer. Not any man onboard the _Finalizer_ , a _Resurgent_ -Class Star Destroyer. They did not acknowledge the pitiful government that had no longer had the right to call itself, the _Galactic_ Empire. No, they served the true inheritors of Palpatine's New Order. _The First Order_. And it's Supreme Leader.

"Are you sure?" the red-headed officer asked, scowling doubtfully down at the planet below.

"Of course I'm sure, General," the dark robed one said, a vocalizer distorting and deepening the man's voice. "The Jedi Academy is here. I will go down, and kill Luke Skywalker."

"Are you even sure he is down there?" the General asked, turning to look at him. "He could be gone for all you know."

"If so then it will be far easier, and perhaps despair at the loss of his precious Academy and Order will drive him too commit suicide," the helmeted man said, turning. "General Hux, have Captain Phasma and her Division ready to depart as soon as I arrive at the hanger."

"I already gave the order, _Ren_ ," Hux spat the last word like venom. "Good hunting. I'd hate to have to get used to another dark sider. It's taken long enough getting used to you."

"I didn't know you cared," the one named Ren snorted, "Don't worry, I'll be back."

General Hux shook his head as he turned to the viewport and looked down at the planet below. He wasn't sure what he wanted more. Luke Skywalker to be killed, or Kylo Ren to meet his end. Either would be perfectly fine with him.

* * *

"The Force moves through all things," the Jedi Master said, standing in the middle of a circle of students. Thirty-six cadets were at the Academy, Padawans as his master had called them. "The Force is neither Light nor Dark. Yes, there is a Light Side and a Dark Side. But they are merely tools. It is how we use the tools that matters."

He looked at the young, eager faces. So young, only three of the twelve learning at his feet were over the age of twenty. Looking at them made him feel so very old. So very old indeed, despite his forty-four years of age.

"There is danger is the Dark Side, yes," the Master continued, "If we allow the fear and anger that it is fueled by to dominate our lives. But there is wisdom to be found in the dark. I have learned from both sides of the Force, Light and Dark. The Dark Side is indeed seductive, but if we hold fast to the Light, we can use the lessons the Dark Side teaches to strengthen our own understanding.

"In the Imperial Palace on Coruscant, we discovered a series of holographic books that the Emperor himself had written. In the third book, _The Great Mystery_ , he says a wise leader must embrace a larger view of the Force, and not just a dogmatic narrow view of the Jedi."

"But, Master!" one of the younger Padawans, a grey-skinned Twi'lek named Suu Quid interjected, "Isn't the Jedi view the only view we should have? Master-"

"The Jedi view of the latter-days of the Jedi Order were not the same as the views they had when they first started, my young Padawan," he cut into the little girl's interjection. "They stopped looking at the Force as a gift all had, but tried to quantify it with blood screenings and slaved themselves to the Republic. The earliest Jedi followed the Force no matter what it required. Sometimes that did have them do things that we would say only a Sith would do. But a true Jedi always follows the will of the Force. If it is the will of the Force, how can it be evil?"

The young Jedi sat there, pondering the words that the master had spoken. The Master smiled kindly as he looked around him. Twi'leks, humans, a wookie and even a Mon Calamari sat around him. Listening raptly to what he was telling them. Unlike the other two masters here, he had a greater understanding of the Dark Side. A far more personal relationship with it.

The doors flung open even as he stood there, admiring his young students. He looked up, to see a single robed figure entering the chambers. He did not know this man, but he felt the intense loathing that oozed from him. How had he not sensed his approach to the Temple?

"A wise question you put to your students, Master Bridger," the masked man said. For a second, the Jedi Master had a flash of terrible memories of Malachor and Lothal, of another masked man. "Is it so evil if the will of the Force is to turn to the Dark? Or is it evil if the will is to extinguish the Jedi yet again?"

"I don't know who you are," Jedi Master Ezra Bridger said, stepping between his students, many rising to their feet at the approach of the masked intruder. "But this is holy ground. You have no right to be here. If you do not leave now, you will be killed."

The masked man laughed and pulled a long cylindrical tube from the depth of his robe. With a flick of his finger, a long blue lightsaber blade extended. Ezra looked at the blade in surprise. He had never seen a dark sider without a red blade before.

"No, old man," the masked figure growled, saluting him with a flourish of his blade. "It is you who will die."

The dark man charged forward, roaring as he came. Ezra's own lightsaber, built back before the Rebellion had even truly been born, leapt to his extended hand and the green blade extended. He swung the blade up, and held it in an over-head defensive posture. Before he knew it, the masked man was on him, and their lightsabers clashed together with a crackle of energy and the two colors combined were yellow where the blades met.

Even as they met, six more robed figures burst into the room, three drawing lightsaber blades of crimson, while the others were swinging rifles into a firing position.

"Defend the younglings!" Ezra roared and he slashed at his opponent. Four blades hissed to life and he saw two human padawans, the wookie and the Mon Calmari run forward. The two blades met again and again, as they struggled back and forth. On the fourth swing, the two blades caught and Ezra bore down on the masked man, using all his strength and the Force to push backwards, driving the taller man back step by hard won step.

"Run!" Ezra shouted to the younglings, and pushing forward his hand, sent a massive Force push that hit the masked man. The figure bent double and slid a few feet back, but managed to keep his balance. "Run!"

Even as he shouted the words, blaster fire rang out from other parts of the Academy. The sounds of lightsaber battles could be heard.

 _The entire Temple is under attack!_

Even as the words passed through his mind, he caught a flurry of motion, and one of his students fell apart, his opponent slicing off both legs with a single sweep then beheading him one a return stroke. Ezra had no time to avenge his student as his opponent thrust his own hand out. A blast of kinetic energy hit him full in the chest and he fell back. He hit the ground hard and was sent skidding across the floor.

Even as he skidded, the dark sider leapt high into the air, switching his grip to deliver a downward thrust to the stunned Jedi Master. Yet, he wasn't stunned. He stayed motionless, time seeming to slow down. He waited…..waited….waited….now! He rolled away just as dark siders feet touched the ground and his blue blade sliced down. It was close, Ezra could feel the heat of the blade as it sank into the stone behind him.

He spun into a kneeling position, and his swing was true. The dark sider let go just in-time to avoid having his hands sliced off at the wrist, but the green energy blade cut through the hilt. Even as the blade spun, his booted foot went up, and connected with the chin of the mask of his foe's helmet.

He was still spinning when he saw the two human padawans fall in rapid succession. Felled by both saber and blaster. The wookie was hard pressed and Ezra knew that if he didn't finish the dark sider he faced soon, he would be unable to help the Padawan. Although he couldn't help smile as the wookie grabbed one of the dark robed figures and with a roar of fury, ripped the man's arm out of his socket single-handedly, all while parrying the saber strokes of another man.

He swung down, slashing as fast as he could. Yet the dark sider was far faster then he was. With surprising ease he avoided ever slash and cut. The wookie bellowed in pain and fell to one knee as a bolt shattered a kneecap. Ezra ground his teeth and reached out, grabbed the opponent and force pulled him towards him. He sliced….again somehow missing the other man as he somehow dodged…. _all while being held in a Force Pull_ , and….too late he saw the black hilt of a secondary lightsaber in the man's hand. The thumb flicked and the blade, one of three jumped out.

Ezra gasped in agonizing pain as the blade pierced him through the gut, driving upwards and exiting just a tad-beneath the shoulder blades. Weakness enveloped him as his hand went limp and with a clatter, the lightsaber clattered to the ground. With a sag he dropped to his knees and turned ever so slightly, his fading eyesight watching the wookie's decapitation by a crimson blade.

In through the back of the room, stormtroopers were marching his padawans back into the room. A chrome-armored stormtrooper seemed to be leading them. She stepped forward, the cowering young padawans looking in fear and astonishment at the older Jedi they had looked up to. All dead or dying as the Jedi Master was.

"Luke Skywalker is not here," the stormtrooper said. For some reason, Ezra could have sworn it was a woman's voice. "We searched everywhere sir."

The dark sider nodded once and turned towards Ezra, whose eyes were focused not on the man who had slain him. "You want to save them?" the dark sider asked, his voice mocking a touch of concern. "Tell me where Luke Skywalker is. Then the Supreme Leader perhaps will have use for them in the Knights of Ren."

"The Force is with me," Ezra smiled wanly, feeling his strength ooze out. "I am one with the Force."

"Pity," the dark sider sighed.

Ezra watched the flashes of light as blaster-fire filled the room. He slumped to the ground and as he hit the floor, watching Padawan after Padawan fall, his final thought was….

 _Sabine, keep my memory alive, my love._

* * *

Leia slumped back in the Senatorial Seat in the Senate House on Bothawui. She gripped her chest, a great pain ripping through it. Her side, a willowy woman bent to her side and gripped her shoulder. Concern oozed from her friend.

"Are you alright, Mi'lady?" she asked.

Leia's pain….it wasn't physical pain. The longer she sat there, the more she was certain of it. No, it was a shadow pain. A sympathetic pain. She had felt it once before. She had been standing on the Observation Deck of the fearsome Death Star. A battle station of immense power. She had felt at the time the pain she felt was simply because of her being Alderaanian. Luke had taught her more about it, how the Force could link people so they could feel such death.

But what could have caused it? It was not nearly as strong as it had been so long ago

"Leia?" the woman asked, cutting into her thoughts. "Do you need to see a medical Droid?"

Leia shook her head, the phantom pain already all but gone. "No," she breathed out. "I don't need a doctor. No…." she trailed off and looked at the bottom of the Senate Chambers. The Naboo Senator was delivering an address to the Senate, denouncing Cato Neimoidia for supposedly interfering with their trade routes. The Neimodian Senator kept interrupting, declaring how outrageous these accusations were. "What I do need is for the Senate to stop squabbling over such petty disputes. Especially ones that seem to be reenacting stuff I read about in history class."

"I agree with you there," the slender woman shook her head.

This was what the Republic had become. No longer did they deal with actual issues. In less than thirty years since its birth, it was bogged down in exactly what had brought down the Old Republic. Senators who cared nothing except making their purses fat with credits, both rightfully and unlawfully gained. Dealing in back room politics, very rarely truly trying to represent their constituents, instead focusing on their profit margins.

Over the past five years, she had begun to wonder if the Republic was rotten. How had it gotten this way? How had the Senate lost its way? There were many reasons that she could point to. Good intentions turned sour. Ten years ago, the majority of the Senate realized something was wrong. They ended the practice of moving the capitol world every year, instead lengthening it to five years. The Chancellor of the Republic, who honestly was nothing more than a public face for the Senate with no powers, due to Mon Mothma's ill-advised termination of the powers of the Chancellor, and they were replaced by a First Senator, who actually did have powers. His term lasted the same length as their stay at a capitol and it was decided that the capitol would be the home world of the First Senator.

But it had within two years soured again. It wasn't just that though. Her son had two years ago left the Jedi Order. Seduced by a man who was more whispers than proof. Supreme Leader Snoke. It had taken her years to even get a name. Every time she thought of Snoke, she shivered. His name was attached to a shadow remnant of the Empire that called itself _The First Order._ The thought of her son's downfall made her close her eyes, fighting back unbidden tears that burned her eyes.

Everything was wrong. She needed to convince them of the true threat. Not the Galactic Empire, which huddled like whipped curs in the boundaries defined by the Galactic Concordance.

"We will table the vote for the sanctions to be imposed on Cato Neimoidia until tomorrow," the First Senator, a man who looked more like lion than Bothan said. Borsk Fey'lya, a political machine that had long lost any semblance of true emotions. "If there is no further items of business…."

Leia shot to her feet. She stood so fast, the blood rushed to her head and she swayed slightly. She gripped the edge of the table to steady herself.

"I have an item of business I need to bring before the Senate," she called out, her voice demanding attention with force of practice and experience.

"The Chair recognizes the Senator from Alderaan."

 _Only there is no Alderaan,_ Leia thought sourly. However, she didn't let it deter her as she made her way down the long steps to the main Senate Floor. The Bothans were a very traditional people, never having upgraded their government buildings to the modern hovering Senatorial pods of the old Coruscant Senate House or the gliding hovering chairs of Chandrila. Even the last capitol of the Republic, Umbara, had moving walking ways installed in their government facilities to give their Senators some well-deserved rest.

Not here and the Exiles of Alderaan, as the survivors of the Destruction of Alderaan were called, had their seat in one of the rear rows. So, she had to make a far longer journey to reach the floor. Very few of the Senators seemed to even notice as she walked by, too absorbed in their own problems to be concerned with her.

At what seemed long last, she reached the floor and looked up at the First Senator. Long snout and fur inclined its head towards her. She nodded and took a deep breath.

"Thank you, First Senator," she began, and then turned to face the gathered assembly, that looked at her with bored expressions. "Honorable representatives of the New Republic. For twenty-four years we have been at peace. A peace hard-won. The Galactic Empire, which once ruled over the majority of known space, now wallows in the squalor of the Core and Deep Core, never to rise again, as long as we are vigilant. The Hutts and other gangster organizations such as Black Sun dare not try to rise again for fear of our power. We have good friends with the Hapes Consortium. Yet, we have become decadent.

"In less than three decades, we no longer care about the common wealth of our people. No, we are more concerned with lining our pockets. Every year I have spoken out against the corruption that is seeping in our ranks. The Populists refuse to allow the government a greater role in preserving the peace. The Centralists refuse to trust the will of the people, thinking they know better. We squabble over such petty things like trade disputes and taxation, the very thing that allowed Supreme Chancellor Vallorum to be ripped from office and to allow a man from Naboo to take control of a Republic that he then manipulated into becoming his personal Empire.

"All while we do this, a great threat is growing in the Unknown Regions. I have spoken of this before, every year since we arrived at Bothawui and I became aware of its existence. They are the First Order, led by a shadowy figure called Supreme Leader Snoke."

Oh yes, they knew. The Senators groaned as she brought up, yet again, the First Order. She could only hope that this time they would take her seriously. They had to.

"Not this again!" the Senator from Hosnian Prime shouted, rising to his feet and shaking his hand. "You have no proof of its existence. Just rumors and hearsay!"

"The Chair does not recognize the Gentleman from Hosnian Prime at this time," Borsk Fey'lya cut him off, holding up a had covered with fur on its back.

Leia turned and nodded her head once to the First Senator. She then returned to stare down the Hosnian Prime ambassador, who sat with a harrumph.

"The First Order has already claimed responsibility for several terrorist acts in the Outer Rim and along our border!" Leia addressed the accusation. "I have even found that there had been funds, weapons and materials funneled to the Unknown Regions. Where is all this going? How has the First Order, who wasn't even known five years ago, suddenly beginning to be more and more bold? There is indeed a First Order, they've even claimed responsibility. We need to send out a heavy reconnaissance force and find them. Hit them before they come out and hit us."

A throat cleared quiet loudly, and she turned to see the Ithorian ambassador arise to his feet. A large box hung from his large neck, covering his vocal cords, allowing his rumblings to translate into Basic.

"Why are we worried about a shadowy group that at the most has committed terrorists acts along the border?" he asked her. "We have reports from the Galactic Empire. They have commissioned three new Star Destroyers of a new variant. There are even actionable reports of a new version of their _Executor_ -Class Star Destroyer being created in the Fondor shipyards. These are clear violations of the Peace Treaty of 5 ABY and we need to focus on it, not phantoms."

"Isn't it clear?" the Hosnian Prime Senator snorted. "We all know why! The Senator's father is Darth Vader! She doesn't want us to focus on the Empire, something that is technically her birth-right!"

Leia curled her fist. She would not, _would not_ , be baited. She ground her teeth, imagining that the _Honorable_ Senator of Hosnian Prime were in between her teeth. Luckily for her, she didn't have to retort.

"I will have no slander and aspirations thrown at Leia Organa-Solo!" Borsk Fey'lya slammed an electronic gavel onto his desk, the note resounding like rocks slamming into each other throughout the assembly hall. "She has sacrificed more for the name of liberty and justice than anyone in this room! As I recall, dear Senator Villecham, your people refused to fight the Empire until the Treaty had already been signed!"

That set the entire Senate chamber into a roar of shouts, threats and hurled insults. The tumult of noise made the room shake around her. As she listened to the noise, she zoned it out, waiting for the noise to die down. As she did so, she allowed her mind to wander for a bit. All the facts she had collected about the First Order were scant, but they painted a picture that was hard to deny.

Yet these people refused to believe her! Her son had abandoned the New Jedi Order, running off with several other students of her brothers to find this mysterious Snoke. She had felt a dark presence that had seemed to follow her son for years. Even in the womb it had been there, watching him with a cold malicious hunger.

And then there was that dull pain she had felt. Reminiscent of the Destruction of Alderaan so many years ago. And these Senators did nothing but debate. This body….she suddenly realized was incapable of action. Even with the changes that had been made in recent years, they were mired by ambition and greed. There was no love or charity and no willingness to do what was needed or right.

Then it moved through her. That tingling she always associated with the Force. It nudged her thoughts, helping her reach the correct decision. As she listened to it and saw where it led to, she suddenly felt clarity. A sense of purpose and correctness.

She cleared her voice, and digging into the Force, used it to project her voice. It was one of the few Force abilities she truly had worked on. Force Vocal Projection, Luke had called it. Her voice boomed throughout the Senate chamber, drowning out the voices of the Senators.

"It is clear that this body is incapable of action!" she shouted. It wasn't in anger, but it swept through the room, and the force of her words brought the arguing to a halt. The Senators, all of them standing on their feet as they had been engaged in verbal fencing, turned towards her. "I have warned you for years that something is wrong. We are focused on the obvious and if my husband taught me anything, its that when someone is doing something obvious, look elsewhere, because it's a distraction. The Galactic Empire is a distraction. This Senate has become a distraction from what is important."

She let her words hang for just a second. The Senate seemed to be holding its collective breath, unwilling to break the silence and tension. She sighed and shook her head.

"As this body is unwilling to listen to my warnings and do what is needed to preserve the liberty of the galaxy," she said, dreading the next few words, "I feel it is my duty to resign from my post as Senator of the New Republic and enter military service, to do the single thing that you all refuse to do. Stop the First Order."

* * *

The young girl sat with arms curled around her legs. Her stomach grumbled, almost as loud as the engine on the wheeled land vehicle that speed down the dirt streets. It drove past her, and dirt and sand flew at her, covering her entire body with the karabast gunk! She closed her eyes and reaching up, brushing off the crap from her head.

"Sith spit!" she cursed, standing to her feet and dusting herself off. The more she battered at the sand and dust, the more of a cloud surrounded her. It took a few long minutes, but at last, she was somewhat presentable.

Well, presentable wasn't really the case. It was extremely hard to be anything nice in Niima Outpost. She hated Jakku, and everything on it. She hated the sand, the run-down town that the dirt-poor people called 'home'. She most especially hated Unkar Plutt.

She had never seen a more lumpy creature in her entire life. He was humanoid in shape, actually, if it wasn't for his rather rotund everything, large bulbous nose and head shaped like a thumb, he'd almost look like a human. He was the main Junk Boss in the north-western hemisphere of Jakku, and he controlled all the barter and food in this region of the world.

One more day, and she'd be thirteen. She didn't look forward to it though. Unkar Plutt's race was known for it's compatibility with all humanoids….whatever that meant. She did know though that supposedly roughly a third of the entire settlement was his children. She had no idea how that was possible, since they all were diverse species.

He was kind enough to give her food, but at age 13, she'd have to get a job. The job of females in Niima Outpost were to entertain Unkar. She wasn't sure how, but she was going to have to do it. It was the way of things. Older women and men were scavengers, collecting salvage from the ancient battle of Jakku, nearly thirty years ago.

The young girl remembered a time though beforehand. A time of love and compassion. There had been a ship, and two parents. She couldn't remember their faces anymore, but she could remember how she had felt. And then they had left her here….

She gripped the staff, a full foot taller in length than she was. She wasn't very good with it, but she could at least hit people with it! And that was what mattered. She gripped it as tightly as she could. She wouldn't allow feelings of lose be the death of her here.

"Mom and Dad will be back!" she said aloud, confident in her voice. "One day."

She stepped away from the wall of the hut and turned. Taking a deep breath, trying to hide her disgust, she walked down the sandy road. Although it was well-traveled, at least once a day a sandstorm blew through the outpost, coating what would otherwise be a hard dirt lane into a sandy mess. Even with the wheeled vehicle's passage, the sand still came up to her ankles, and try as she might, her skinny frame seemed unable to keep exclusively in the track.

A few minutes passed as she walked, not looking at the poor souls that made up the sorry inhabitants of the outpost. Men in lumpy clothing wandered the street in groups of three, carrying clubs in their hands. Women of multiple races chatted to each other or went about daily errands. The children of Unkar Plutt ran through the outpost, filthy little beasts. Just like everything else.

At long last, she came to the shanty that was Unkar Plutt's stall. There he kept all the stores of food for the entire outpost. She fell into line, behind a very old woman who carried a piece of equipment in her arms. There was a tall Melitto, an alien that had chitin plates that covered their faces. He also was carrying something, a long pipe looking object. She stood behind a long-necked Nu-Cosian, bent over double with tons of scavenged parts.

Looking at the bundle, she noticed that one looked like a droid motivator. The girl knew what those were, since her father had owned a droid. Even though it had been years, she could still spot one.

She had no friends, and no one spoke to her. No, the only talking came from the front of the line, where Unkar Plutt was conducting business. So, she fell into her own thoughts. Nothing was really there, except a desire to leave the planet forever. Yes, her parents would return, but surely, she could have an adventure while waiting for them?

It seemed forever for the line to finally end, and at long last, legs and feet tired from waiting, she stepped up to the stall window. The Nu-Cosian was walking away, no longer bent so far down, and she watched him go before glancing back at Unkar.

"Well, well," he said, his voice kindly but his smile leering. "If we don't have the big little lady. Tomorrow is your birthday! You'll be a big girl and get the job! You'll like it, I'm sure."

She didn't know what exactly it was. But the very words made her shiver as if something slimy was being poured all over her. For some reason, the very word 'job' made her cringe.

"I suppose," she said.

"Don't be that way!" he held out his hands defensively. "We all got to eat. At thirteen, you are no longer a charity case. No siree! Got to pull your own weight. Which reminds me, time for your portion."

He grabbed a plastic, air-sealed packet and plopped it on the counter. She reached up, her slender fingers wrapping around the plastic of the packet. Small white powder in one corner, blue powder on the other corner. It would last one meal, and that was it.

She turned to go. She just wanted to get home and eat her food. She didn't want to think of what disgusting things he had in mind for her.

"I'll be seeing you!" Unkar called out.

The young girl tried not to let the tears show in her eyes as she entered the little run-down shack that was her home. It wasn't anything more than a board that was leaned up against the wall of a hut of a family that while they wouldn't let her live with them, were understanding about her having her 'house' leaning on theirs.

Rags were draped on either end to make something close to doors. She tied the ends to the frame when she got in, and went about making herself the food. A little bit of water mixed into the powder, and she had instant bread and something that may have been vegetables. She wasn't sure of it.

The board that she had leaned against the wall had long narrow holes cut into it. While they offered some privacy, it didn't stop anyone from looking in and her looking out. She stared out across the desert dunes that rose from the west side of Niima Outpost, and tears streamed down her cheeks.

All she wanted to do was leave, and never come back. Maybe to find if her parents had returned for her. But still…that was never going to happen. No one _ever_ arrived at Jakku. Not a spaceship.

Although, she mused sadly, wiping at the tears, she'd love it if her hero, Luke Skywalker or his friend Han Solo, the Smuggler arrived and whisked her away. But those were dreams, and dreams didn't come true.

* * *

There was darkness over the landscape and she was laying down to sleep. Most of Niima Outpost was ushered away for the night, preparing for bed. The glow of the light the was cast from her small lantern flickered out, and she was soon cast in darkness. She stared up at the slanted roof, fearful of the next day. What it would bring.

As she lay there, a low humming filled the night sky. She stared at the slanted roof, trying not to pay attention to it. Yet with every passing moment the humming grew louder. Light, white and immensely bright filled her small home and she scrambled to her knees. The lights dimmed as the engines….that was what they were….dimmed, dropping to a standby mode.

She could scarcely believe it! It was a ship! The Jakku moon-light helped outline the ship, and she couldn't believe it, no ships ever came to Jakku, they only left! A hissing sound escaped the back of the ship, and light began to crack as a ramp lowered, descending. Soft lights shone from it.

Excitedly, she scurried out, not even waiting to untie the raggedy blankets that were her doors. She gripped the handle of her staff and dragged it with her. Luckily, she was scrawny enough that she slid under the cloth and rising to a crouch, ran towards a low-lying wall that ringed the outpost. Two Republic-era engines jutted from the ground, breaking the wall in the middle, leading to the outskirts.

Running crouched, the staff dragged on the sand, but it didn't take her too long to reach the wall and kneel behind it, looking between long, narrow gaps in the durasteel of the wall. Excitedly, she looked towards the ship.

Down the ramp came two figures. The first figure was a man, she could tell even from the silhouette. She could tell the jacket that he wore that hung limply around him, and the mop of unkempt hair. A blaster, a _real blaster!_ hung from his hip. As he stepped out onto the sand, something massive stepped off as well. It was massive, towering over the man.

She heard it growling and bark to the man. Was that an ewok? Her mother had told her stories about the great warriors who had assisted Han Solo the Smuggler and Luke Skywalker take down the Imperial army. She had never seen an ewok before, but the massive creature, the light filtering through fur, she could only assume that such a mighty creature could be an ewok. No wonder the Empire had fallen before them!

"Okay, okay," the man said, his voice cutting into the darkness. "We talk to Unkar and then we're out of here. We got to get back to the _Endor Moon_ so we can met up with Lando."

The ewok let out a series of grunts. The young girl found listening to the ewok fascinating! So intimidating and fierce! How could the man understand it?

"Me too buddy," the man said, "I hope he hasn't given us the ring around."

With that, the two figures moved away from the landing ramp, and headed towards town. She watched them go, two shadows moving in the darkness. As she knelt there, listening to the two chat even as they walked, the best of friends, she felt a twinge of sorrow. Especially as she saw them enter the village and pass her by, not noticed the desert rat that kept close to the wall.

 _I wish I had friends,_ she thought sadly and turned away. She had better go back to…..

She heard a sound. Like a music, whistling to her. She turned back to the ship and it grew louder for her. Shaking her head, she turned away, but the music grew louder. Again, she turned to the ship. Confusion caused her to frown.

It was as if the music was calling to her. She felt a small wind fluttering around her hair, but a quick glance around showed her there was no rippling of wind on the sand. Even at night one could see it, if they had lived in a desert as long as she had.

Slowly, she stepped forward, and uncertainly she walked around the wall and exited the village. The music was summoning her, she could feel it in her soul. Slowly she walked towards the open ramp, her heart pounding as she made the short journey to the ship's ramp. She stopped at the ramp, suddenly frightened. She tightened her grip on the staff and suddenly unsure, she back-stepped.

Yet a voice seemed to speak to her. _Go._

Swallowing, her limbs shaking, she walked up the ramp, and entered the hull of the ship. And the singing stopped.

She was in a round hallway, the curved to either side of the access point of the boarding ramp. She took a right, and walked through it, her eyes wide. She took in everything as she stepped towards an open area on the ship.

A small black and white checkered board stood up from the floor, a circular section couch. A large panel lay across the floor, slightly open. A box was off to the side of it, bandages and other medical supplies in there. A bed was stuck into an alcove in the wall, a blanket rumpled on the end of it.

Glancing around at all the panels that lined the walls, she noticed something that made her mouth drop open. She nearly dropped her staff in surprise and glee.

"A water dispenser!" she all but squealed. She ran to it, grabbing the cup that lay next to it. Some long brown hairs were stuck to it, but there was water in it. She lifted the cup and guzzled the water down. She felt the sweet water flowing past her lips and down her parched throat. She didn't even mind the hairs that tickled her small oval face.

She reached out to turn on the water to fill up the cup when she heard voices. Fear jumped into her chest and looking around panicked, she dropped the cup back on the table. No, that wasn't where it was! She moved her hand to scoot it over to where she thought it was, but the voices were getting closer.

She looked wildly to find a hiding spot. The panel in the floor! The one that was open! She ran to it, and pushed it far enough that she could stick her staff in. Satisfied that it fit, at an angle, she slid in herself. The words of the voices were nearly audible as she grunted, sliding the panel closed. She might be scrawny, but living on Jakku meant she had turned that scrawniness into muscle.

The lid slid into place just in-time. She curled into a ball as foot-steps sounded throughout the ship. The man and ewok were back! Well, she'd wait for them to go to sleep, then she would slip off. That was what was responsible.

"You said it, Chewie," the man groused. "Unkar Plutt is a dunce. Trying to sell us information that's at least a year old. We went clear out of our way for this? Won't Lando be pleased, not!"

The massive Ewok made a sniffing sound. She could hear it clearly. Sith spit, Ewoks have noisy smellers! The creature barked to the man who laughed derisively.

"You and your nose!" he laughed. "The ship is _supposed_ to smell odd! It's not like this exactly a new ship! Get the engines out of standby and I'll close the ramp."

 _Wait! Wait! I need to get off!_ The young girl needed to get back to her small hut! What if her parents came back. She needed to be here!

 _They aren't coming back,_ a voice said to her. She felt like someone touched her shoulder. She gasped and looked around, but saw no one there. _This is your chance to have a real family. To be wanted. You are taking your first steps into a larger world._

She was bewildered. Had someone talked to her? She was still looking around, trying to find it, when the ship jostled. She yipped once, louder than she expected as the ship vibrated. She glanced up, and between the grates in the panel, she saw the man stop in mid-step. She covered her mouth with her hand, trying to remain quiet. The man looked around, then shrugged and resumed walking.

"Come on, Chewie!" the man called out, "Let's get out of here. Leave this dirt-ball behind."

She felt the ship begin to rise, and her center of gravity shifted. Back and forth she was jostled, her arms flailing as she tried to grab onto one of the many pipes and wires that ran all around her body. The staff also bounced around, and it whacked her a few times.

Then the ship tilted, and she was thrown forward. She grunted as she slammed into the back of the compartment. The g-forces held her in place, until suddenly the pull of gravity released her, and she slumped back. Dazed and battered.

There she sat until she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

A massive clanging awoke her, and she blearily looked up. She didn't know where she was, nor did she have time to figure it out. Two massive furry hands grabbed her by the arms and lifted her high, straight out of the compartment. Still drowsy, she was suddenly staring into a face that had fur, teeth, twin beady eyes and a round nose. The creature growled, and she screamed.

"Settle down!" a voice called to her. She kept screaming though and the Ewok shook her hard, back and forth until she was so loosened that she stopped screaming. "Settle down, kid. Chewie, put her down."

The Ewok grunted as he lowered her to the ground. The young girl, now on her feet, scurried back to the bed, jumping up onto it and putting her arms around her legs that she pulled up to her chin. She glanced back and forth between the man and the Ewok.

"What are you doing on my ship?" the man demanded. She didn't answer right away though, so he stepped up to her. His hands were curled into fists and placed on his hips. A scowl crossed his face. "Look, you don't want to talk, I'll have the wookie toss you out of the nearest airlock."

"Wh-wh-what?" she asked, blinking at him.

"That's right!" his eyebrows furrowed. "I'll have Chewie here toss you out of an airlock."

"He's….he's not an Ewok?" the girl asked.

The man frowned, but this time it was from confusion. "What are you talking about?"

The young girl lifted a trembling hand and pointed to the one called 'Chewie'. "Isn't….isn't he an Ewok?"

"An Ewok?" the man asked in disbelief. Chewie barked in something that sounded like laughter. "No! Ewoks are little furry things….don't you know what a Wookie is?"

She shook her head. "I only know one wookie," she said, "His name is Chewbacca. He, he, he's friend with Han Solo the Smuggler."

"Oh really?" the man tisked. "I'm no Smuggler, little lady. And Chewbacca prefers to be called Chewie."

She frowned. What was he talking about? No….it couldn't be! She had seen a picture her dad had kept, but no….this old guy couldn't be him! The man who made the Kessel Run in 14 parsecs!

"Is….is it really you?" she asked, pulling her arms away from her legs and allowing herself to relax. She scooted towards the edge of the bed. "Are you really Han Solo? The one who knew Luke Skywalker the Jedi?"

"Maybe," he retorted. "But you still haven't explained who you are and what you are doing on my ship!"

"I saw you land outside Niima Outpost and I watched you both leave the _Aluminum Falcon_ …."

" _Millennium Falcon_ ," Han Solo corrected her. "So, you saw us leave my ship and decided you were going to stow away, huh? Is that right?"

"No!" she shook her head, "I heard singing and it led me here. There was this voice that said 'Go'."

"Music and voices," Solo said, glancing sideways at Chewbacca. The wookie, not ewok, shook his head, his fur flailing around him. "Look kid, I'm returning you to Jakku. Your parents must be worried sick about you."

"No!" she screamed running up and grabbing him. "I can't go back!"

"Why not?" Han demanded, towering over her. She barely came up to his rib-cage.

"I just can't!" she shook her head. Fear was gripping her, she couldn't go back. That wasn't what heroes like Han Solo did! They didn't leave little girls with bad people.

"Not good enough!" Han said, pulling away from her. He turned away and began to head to a corridor to presumably led to the cockpit. "Your parents must be worried sick…."

" _I don't have any parents!_ " she screamed, cutting him off. Chewbacca glanced back and forth between the two. The young girl didn't see the wookie do so, but she felt his gaze. Han Solo didn't turn around but he stopped moving, as stiff as a board.

Those words were like a great wall of denial having been torn down. All the emotions she had denied herself began to flood into her. Tears stung her eyes blurring her vision. Yet now that she had said the words, she couldn't stop herself.

"They left me alone when I was only seven," she sobbed, each word hurting her as much as anything that had ever happened. "They didn't say anything. I watched them leave me. I begged for them to come back, but they wouldn't. I cried myself to sleep, praying to every god I heard of they would come back, but they never did. I had to fend for myself, and I turn thirteen today! Unkar Plutt wanted me to entertain him for food, whatever that was. I can't go back, I don't have a family or home!

"I barely get to eat, barely drink! I live in a shed that had rags for walls. I sleep cold every night. I can't survive it any longer.

"I've even dreamed that Han Solo the Smuggler, Luke Skywalker the Jedi or his sister Princess Leia would save me. But they never did. _Please, don't make me go back there!"_

With those words out of her, she dropped to her knees, holding her hands to her cover her face as she sobbed. All the sorrows in her life crashed around her. She had no friends, no family, and her hero, Han Solo, was going to return her back to Jakku, a place she hated with all her heart.

She was still sobbing when two hands touched her on either shoulder.

"Come on kid!" Han Solo said, rubbing her upper arms. "Don't cry. I hate it when girls cry! If you don't want to go back, you don't have to. Trust me kid, I know what it's like to have family abandon you."

"You…you do?" she asked, dropping her hands ever-so-slightly.

Han gave her a lopsided smile as he put a hand to her cheek and wiped away the tears with a rough finger. A finger that she felt was as soft as a pillow.

"I do," he assured her. "You can stay here with Chewie and me. But you will have to work hard! No freeloaders on the _Falcon_. And I am a mean old man."

"Are you as mean as Unkar Plutt?" she asked, almost too afraid of the answer.

Han Solo made a face. "No one's _that_ mean!" he said with mock seriousness.

New tears poured down her face as she flung her arms around Han Solo the Smugglers neck. These were tears of joy. Not of sorrow. Which felt so good! It was so good too feel the warmth and strength of someone else. She had gone so long without human contact; besides the times she had been sick and the only healer had made her better.

"Tell me," Han Solo said in her ear, allowing her to hug him as long as she wanted. "What's your name?"

"Kira," she said, closing her eyes. "Kira Rey."

"Well, Kira Rey," Han said with a smile in his voice. "Welcome to the _Falcon_."

Chewbacca let out a roar and Rey felt happier than she had ever been. She as still holding Han Solo when she fell asleep, her dreams filled with roaming the galaxy with Han Solo the Smuggler.


	2. The Roads we Start On

**Chapter 1: The Roads We Start On**

 **Unidentified First Order Facility**

A flight of TIE Fighters roared into life. They were of the TIE Interceptor class that had been in use by the Empire from the days of the Early rebellion. They differed in one major aspect that could be seen immediately to the naked eye. Their solar paneled wings folded across the struts that held wings to the cockpits, but would then unfold as they began to take off, hovering devices allowing them to lift a few feet off the ground. High enough to unfold.

The two First Order officers walked across the floor of the hanger, snow melting off their bodies with every step. The wider of the two men looked up at the TIE's admiring their sleek, compact design. His companion noted him gawking and elbowed him. They weren't here to drool over the newest toys of the First Order.

The TIE squadron roared forward, out of the large hanger doors into the light grey that covered the world from the heavy snow clouds that threatened to unload upon the ground.

Had anyone looked at the base as an outsider, they'd have assumed this belonged to the Galactic Empire. Grey uniformed technicians and mechanics worked on ships, a few arguing with black armored pilots who believed they knew more about the problems of their ships then the men responsible for maintaining and fixing them. Stormtroopers in pristine white armor patrolled the perimeter.

Yet there were differences everywhere. The pilots had only one life-support hose that connected to their oxygen supply and the helmets. The stormtrooper helmets did not look like a scowling skull, but grinning like a carnivorous beast, connected vocalizers with the black visors. The TIEs may have been black, but red rimmed the edges of their solar wings.

And then there was the massive flags that fell from the ceiling and draped the walls. They were not a black cog on a white field. No, this was a circle of black spikes in the center of a black polygon, displayed on a blood-red field.

Stormtroopers halted at attention as the two officers stepped past them. Technicians and pilots did as well. Within a few minutes, they had traversed the long hanger and arrived at a series of turbolifts that stood in the exact center of the back wall. As they approached, they came across two scout-troopers. Helmets with an elongated hood on top, small buttons of black and red were placed near the edge.

"….really don't like patrolling out their in the cold. Last time I was out there, I ended up getting frost-bite through my armor," one of the scout-troopers complained.

"Must be a faulty thermal unit in your suit," the other one replied. They were of roughly the same height.

"No, they just need to retire the old the old 74-Z's," the trooper complained. "My dad used them at Endor, you know. I heard Starkiller Base has the new 75-As, with the visors on the front and deployable sides. If we could get a few of them….sith spit!"

The two troopers snapped to attention, only now realizing that two officers were stepping up behind them. The slimmer of the two officers, curly brown hair sticking out from beneath his black hat with the two side-fins of his officer's cap buttoned to the cap of the hat, tisked.

"Troopers," he said, shaking his head. "I'd be a bit more careful if I were you about complaining. Some officers may think that you two were disloyal."

"Never sir!" one of the troopers replied, his pride evident in his voice, even behind the vocalizer. "ST-3399 and myself would never be disloyal sir."

"Then why haven't you gotten us a lift yet?" the officer, a Commander's rank plague across his chest asked, "I'll be willing to forget your entire conversation if you get us one."

"We've already summoned one sir," ST-3399 replied, and even as he said the words, the turbolift door slid open. "There it is sir. As requested."

"Thank you, Trooper," the Commander said, and he and his colleague walked past them into the lift. They turned and waited. "Well?"

"Well what, sir?" the trooper who hadn't given him his serial number asked.

"Are you getting in or what?" the Commander asked, rolling his eyes dramatically.

The two troopers looked sideways at each other and shrugging, entered as well. The troopers turned at the front of the lift, the door sliding shut. It was a little cozy with four men, two in armor, but it wasn't claustrophobic.

"We're new transfers here," the fatter officer, a lieutenant plague across his chest said, "What level is Research on? We weren't told by the officer on duty in the hanger."

One of the troopers snorted in his helmet. "Corporal Nuwell is one of the most…." He began, but catching himself, ended rather lamely, "he's not a well man, sir."

ST-3399 sighed and his body slumped every slightly at the stupidity of his comrade. "Research is on Level 75 sir," ST-3399 reported. "We are heading to Level 50, sir."

"Alright then," the Lieutenant said. Then called to the lift computers, "Levels 50 and 75."

The turbolift began to ascend. A silence fell over the group, the two troopers ill-at-ease and the officers feeling the tension on the two troopers. It was a short trip, but by the time the door had slid open and the two troopers removed themselves to enter what apparently was the Mess Hall, the two officers were grateful to be rid of the two men. The fat man pulled his cap off and ran his hand across his balding black head. Back went on the cap and soon, the door slid open.

They exited the lift and found a sign, pointing in different directions. Medical and Scientific research to the right, Military and Technological Research to the left. The captain turned to the left, his companion following close behind him. They passed a stormtrooper, who carried a short rifle, black in stock except for white striped flanges that stuck out of the barrel. He snapped to attention as they passed by, but resumed after they had walked past.

The door opened to their approach and in they entered. A technician wearing a black uniform nodded to them as they approached. He had an extremely bored expression on his long face but neither officer could have faulted with how he pulled himself up and at least acted like he was interested.

"Commander, Lieutenant," the technician nodded his head. "May I be of some assistance?"

"Yes," the Captain said, "How much access do you have?"

"As in can I access anything on the network?" the tech asked, sounding a little confused. "Well yes. I may not be able to open restricted files, but I can take you there and you can enter in your authorization codes. What can I get for you?"

"Your code cylinder," the Lieutenant asked.

"My what-" the technician began but his words were cut short. The Lieutenant's fist flew forward and smashed the First Order technician straight in the nose. Cartilage cracked, and he fell backwards. Hitting his head on the wall, the technician was out cold before his body hit the ground.

The Commander rolled his eyes as he glanced at the man. "Really Snap?" he asked as Timmen "Snap" Wexley stepped around the desk that had separated them from him.

"Hey!" Timmen gave a lop-sided grin and held up his hands defensively as he bent over the unconscious tech. "I learned from the best boss! And you are the best!"

"Cute!" he sighed. He stepped around the consoles and was still shaking his head when Snap stood and slid the few inches long code cylinder into the slot on the console before him. The red cap of the cylinder lit up as the data base began to open up. "Copy everything over to the data disc we brought with us. We'll have to review it on the go."

"I don't know if we can," Snap replied, waving his hand in-front of the screen, "Poe, looking at what we've got here, there is something like ten thousand terabytes on here. There's no way we can download everything onto here!"

"Fine!" Poe said, looking over the options on the screen. There was Project data, military assets, personnel records, a lot of option to choose from. "Our main goal is projects. Get started downloading them. We need to get as much of it back to the General as possible."

"Alright boss," Snap said, "Keep an eye out?"

"Yeah, sure," Poe said, and stepping away from the dad banks, headed towards the door. A monitor screen on the side showed the corridor outside of the room. And he settled down to wait for the data to download.

Poe Dameron had been eager to join the military. His parents had been in the War, and the stories he had grown up on had been of great battles, missions to exotic places, meeting people that he still couldn't believe they had _actually_ met. Surely not his folks!

So, when he had been old enough, he had rushed to sign up! He was a crack pilot, one of the top ten in the entire Republic. Most of the best pilots came from the legends of the War. Such as Antilles or Porkins. But last he had checked, he had risen to the fifth slot!

His gun-ho style though had ended up getting him transferred to the Resistance Division. He had risen to commanding of their four fighter squadrons, the X-Wing _Black Squadron_ , reporting directly to General Leia Organa-Solo, who had transferred to the military six years ago after resigning from the Senate. She was second-in-command only to Admiral Ackbar, who hoped that his status as legend would help the misfits of Resistance Division out and shape them up to be the best.

The stormtrooper they had passed came back. He walked up to the door, pushed on it a few times. Poe froze as he watched it do so, and held up his hand. Snap also saw it, and they both reached for their side-arms. But, the stormtrooper turned around and walked away, satisfied by his little inspection.

"That was close sir," Snap said.

"Yeah," Poe took a steadying breath. "Hurry up so we can get out of here."

"Just a few more minutes than we'll be good to go."

"Nothing take a few minutes," Poe shook his head, but returned to watching the monitor for the corridor.

The few minutes passed with what seemed an eternity. After what seemed forever, Snap replied with a triumphant beaming smile, "Got it!"

"Let get going, Snap," Poe hissed, "I'm getting pretty antsy waiting here."

Snap slid the data disc into the pocket of his pants and bending over, slid the code cylinder back into the pocket on the Techs uniform. Patting him with a mischievous grin, Snap moved around and approaching the door, they exited. The stormtrooper was approaching the Research Center and came to an abrupt halt, standing at rigid attention as they passed by.

They gave him no indication of noticing him as they approached the turbolift. Now was the most dangerous part of the assignment. If they weren't careful, they'd be caught, interrogated and tortured. Then their sorry states would be sent out by holographic recording to the entire galaxy to see. Recorded and public execution was becoming a norm for the First Order, sent to those who had sent the prisoners. All of course by a very persuasive method that insured they'd force the truth out of them.

The turbolift opened and entering, they began to descend. They were stopped half-way down, and Poe took a deep breath, putting on a stare as two scout troopers entered the lift.

"Hello Captain!" one of them said, "Did you find the research lab?"

"Yes trooper, we were," Poe said, frowning. "I forget your call-sign."

"ST-3399," he provided and Poe nodded in recognition. Yes, he just didn't like having to share the lift with troopers that would recognize them if an alert went out. "Hanger." He called to the turbolift controls and it resumed its descent towards the hanger.

The lift arrived shortly at the hanger and it opened. The hanger was still just as crowded as beforehand. The troopers slipped off to do their tasks and Poe and Wexley moved away from them. Their bee-line would take them out of the hanger and into a set of woods a few clicks away from the facility.

They were half-way through the hanger, troopers coming to attention when the klaxons began sounding. "Intruder alert, intruder alert!" a female voice, crisp and monotone. "Lock down the base. Intruder alert, intruder alert! Lock down the base."

"The jigs up!" Snap hissed sideways at his commander. "We're in deep now!"

Poe thought quickly, thinking of everything he could possibly do to salvage the situation. It wasn't completely over, no, they could get out. They just needed to keep cool heads. Troopers and security were running to different points.

"You three!" Poe shouted to stormtroopers that were running past. "Follow us! We need to secure the defensive guns for the perimeter."

"Yes sir!" they acknowledged the order, and falling in behind the two "First Order" officers, they ran at a trot towards the doors to the hanger. The large, thick doors were beginning to fall into place, and they had a very short time before they their escape route would be closed.

They increased their speed and the troopers followed suit. If they were fast enough, they'd get out and none would be the wiser! The hanger door came closer and closer to them and soon, they were out, the doors closing behind them, slamming with a thud that shook the snow landscape. A river of molten rock flowed no more than a kilometer from the facility. A quick look back would have shown the facility that resembled a castle of an ancient king of the world.

"Check out the right guns and we'll check the woods," Poe ordered the troopers who peeled to the right as ordered. Poe and Snap continued at a hearty run towards the forest, pulling out their blasters as they ran. Soon the trees enveloped them, helping to keep them shaded.

"I never thought we'd see the exit!" Snap grunted in disbelief.

"That's why _I'm_ the Commander and you aren't," Poe said with a grin. Snap rolled his eyes as he suppressed a laugh.

Soon they had arrived at a small overrise that hide their vehicle from view. An X-Wing T-99, the fourth generation of the X-Wing Class starfighter. It was a two-seater, although it could be still run by a single pilot. The back seater was for the bomber and navigator, while the front was the primary pilot and gunner.

Snap bent over, panting. Sweat glistened off his forehead. Poe shook his head at his friend and subordinate. The Republic Military had a rigorous training regime and high physical standards. It wasn't even like that the other man was out of shape, but he had enough sweat inside of him to water a desert planet and turn it into a paradise!

"I just need a small break," Snap said, breathing in deeply.

"Really?" Poe asked, "Come on! Get your fat rear-end into gear and let's blow this joint! Get back to D'Kar and report to the General!"

"You gotta be kidding me!" Snap reached out and leaned against the tree. "This ship isn't going to go anywhere, and they think the intruders are _inside_ the facility, not out….."

The snap-pop of a blaster rang out and Poe looked with eyes widening at his comrade. A blaster bolt hole burned in his chest, directly in the center. The man looked down, surprise on his face at the sizzling hole that bore through his entire body. Another blast caught him in the shoulder and he collapsed to the ground. The snow poofed around him as he landed hard.

"No!" Poe screamed in grief as he saw his friend fallen to the ground. He ran over and dropped to his knees, feeling the heat of a near-miss from the blaster rifle that was firing at him. He grabbed his friend and rolled him over, again feeling a near-miss. His vision was seared with the hot-white image of a blaster-bolt. "Don't be dead! Come on!"

But it was an exercise in futility. The blank look of Timmin "Snap" Wexley was all he needed to see to let him know that this hero of Resistane Division had died. One of the few casualties from his _Black Squadron._ Tears threatened to well-up in his eyes but he clenched a fist. No, there was no time for that.

He could hear voices in the trees, and looking up, he saw the white uniforms of Stormtroopers moving through the snow. These had long white balcalvas that flowed around their helmet and fell around their shoulders. There was no time to count, but as they approached, they began firing. The trees he kneeled next to began to chip away with the blaster fire, as did the snow.

"Sorry, old friend." Poe hated to, but he reached inside Snap's pocket, and clutching the data disc, pulled it out. He had to get back to his X-Wing and take off, and fast! The stormtroopers were getting close, and jumping to his feet, he ran as fast as he could backwards. His blaster pistol fired once, twice, thrice. He was a snapshot and each blast resulted in one of his pursuers dropping. But each time one Stormtrooper fell, two more seemed to be converging.

As soon as he began to descend the rise, he turned and ran full-tilt towards the X-Wing. "BB-8!" he shouted, grabbing the ladder that hung extended from the front of the fighter. "Get those engines firing! We need to get out of here pronto!"

BB-8 was a spherical droid, orange and white. He had a half sphere on the top of his head, two black bubble-visors sticking out. It beeped an inquiry at him.

"He's not coming," Poe said shortly, sliding into the pilots seat. Even as he sat, the ladder retracted and the cockpit closed. The hearty roar of the engine followed and for a few long seconds, they remained on the ground, letting the engines warm up. If they tried taking off without a few seconds warm-up, the engine would stall.

Laser bolts whizzed over the lip of the rise and Poe knew they were getting close. Too close.

"Mother of moons!" Poe growled and thrust the thruster nozzle completely forward. As he did, he angled and the star-fighter shot forward and up and a curve. Tree branches snapped off all around them, blaster-fire tracing after him but missing. "Hold on BB-8! This is going to get interesting!"

They shot out of the canopy, and the astromech droid squealed in alarm. Glancing down, Poe gripped tightly around the flight stick. The TIE Interceptors that had left the base were on an intercept course, ironically.

"You need to calculate the jump to hyperspace and punch it as soon as you're ready," Poe ordered over the intercom. "I'm going to have to fight them off."

A push of a button on the console engaged the S-Foils locking into attack position. Unlike the old X-Wings that had the two wings one on top of the other, the wings were on the exact same level, but staggered. The upper wings were behind the lower wings and they were a few inches longer, so that the laser cannons could fit easily. They popped up and he pressed down the trigger.

There were eight TIEs that were coming straight at him, but six dodged in time. Two of them were lined straight up, both exploding in a ball of fire. Having scattered, they were unable to concentrate on him, which allowed him the chance to choose his targets.

He veered to the right, and firing a rapid volley of lasers, he took down two more TIEs. The first one lost a wing and began spiraling outwards and the other one he hit in it's engines. The TIE plunged straight into the molten river, which at once began to swallow it in its fiery embrace.

Green lasers lanced around his fighter, and a quick glance showed him that one TIE was on his tail. Slamming hard on his brakes, his fighter jerked and tilted upwards. The TIE, unable to stop in time, flew right across Poe's line of fire. He lit the sky with red lasers and yellowish explosion.

A series of beeps and he was thrown back in his seat as the X-Wing shot into hyperspace, leaving he three remaining TIE Interceptors bewildered at the rapid loss of all their squadron mates.

 **New Republic Spaceport, Chandrila**

Kira walked into the cockpit, the engines whining down to a shut off. Chewbacca sat in the copilots seat, his long arms switching off switches as Han Solo swiveled in his chair and rose. He stretched, his back popping.

"I have business to attend to Kira, both me and Chewie," he said looking at her between grimacing eyes. "There is some techs coming to see the Falcon later. Give us some minor modifications to this old bird running."

"Can I come with you on your business?" Kira asked, running her hands through her many-bunned hair. The latest style she was sporting was a Jakkuan one, where the hair ran down the back in several buns, resembling a row of hills.

"Nah," Han said, grabbing his blaster pistol belt and buckling it around his waist. He stepped out of the cockpit and entered the corridor, Kira stepping sideways to allow him to go through. "I need you to stay here and keep an eye on the techs. Make sure they don't mess up the Falcon."

Kira crossed her arms over her stomach. "I don't know why you just don't let me do it," Kira grumbled, "You know I am the best mechanic on this ship! I can fix it to specs."

"Sorry, but I run a legitimate business and the Falcon has to have actual technicians look it over, or the old girl can end up in mothballs," he pointed out to her. Chewbacca moved past her and she stared sulkeningly at them. "Make sure Ghent doesn't break my computers while I'm going."

"I heard that!" the other official member of the crew, slicer Ghent shouted from the back. Ghent ironically wouldn't have heard Han Solo if he had been next to him.

"We'll be back soon," Han said, patting her once on the shoulder. With that, they headed for the ramp. They hadn't even been gone for a full minute when several white and taupe garbed technicians came on board. Their hands were filled with tool boxes and PADDs that had information displayed on them.

"Oh great," the Engineering Chief that led the techs groaned, rolling his eyes as he spotted Kira. "We have to do yet _another_ bucket of bolts. I never understood why people want to keep these Corellian YT-1300s around. They've been junk for decades."

Kira didn't like this man's attitude. What right did he have to call her home junk? Didn't he know what ship this was? How famous it was? She bet that he didn't even know what the Kessel Run was?

"Look," Kira said, trying to be as polite as possible. She had knocked out the last Engineering Chief that had come to expect the Falcon when he said Han would be better off dumping it on a junk world. "This is one of the most famous ships in the entire galaxy! The _Millenium Falcon_ performs better than most current cargo ships that are newer!"

The Chief looked up at her. He was a short man compared to her. Yet he looked at her with an expression of contempt.

"Unless you've had a sex change, you aren't Captain Solo, are you?" he asked.

"No," she said confused. "Why…."

"Good," he said with a nod, "Come on boys. Let's get to work."

They elbowed their way past her. One massive Besalisk tech even put out one of his four massive hands to push her against the wall. She glared at them as they moseyed onto the ship and began to tinker around. With a scowl on her face, she walked over to the techs, and followed each like a blood fly. Checking their work, and arguing with each and every one of them on how best to do what they were trying to do.

"You aren't putting a compressor on the fuel lines are you?" she demanded of the Chief Engineerer who was indeed monkeying around in the fuel access panel in the cockpit.

"It's standard procedure," he replied gruffly. "It makes the fuel last by 13% longer."

"It puts undo stress on the hyperdrive!" Kira pointed an accusing finger at him. "Any engineer worth his salt would know that fuel compressors are not meant to be installed on ships with hyperdrives."

"I've been doing my job for twenty-five years," he shot her a dark look. "Hells, I probably been doing it since before you were a dark thought to darken the souls of everyone you see. I'll do my job."

"But you aren't doing the job correct!" she argued. "I should report you for not doing your proper job."

The Chief Engineer grunted and he finished pushing the compressor into place. The solid plastic block of blue fins that made up the compressor lit up with a green glow. He gave an evil grin as he closed it shut.

"Old junkers like this don't _need_ a hyperdrive," he said stiffly and left the cockpit, elbowing her to the side.

* * *

"Bala-Tik," Han Solo said, holding up his hands, "When have I ever not delivered on a promise? _The Guavian Death Gang_ has been very important on every salvage operation."

"You've made promises before," the thick accented man glared at him, his red-armored crew standing around him. "We've been working for you for ten years, and we haven't had a good job since the Maw Installation haul last year."

"You are your boys will get well paid," Han assured him. "Same thing for you, Tasu-Leech. You and the _Kanjiklub_ are in my heart. You two along with the _Endor's Moon_ are intrical to my entire operation!"

"You keep making bold claims," Tasu-Leech scoffed in his own language. "But me and my boys haven't seen a red cent in as long if not longer than the boys of the _GDG._ If you don't hurry up, we'll take up that offer from the Hutts."

"The Hutts?" Han laughed, "Those worm-ridden filths?"

"Those worm ridden filths have gotten back into nearly the power they had before the Empire was in charge," Tasu-Leech said, "And they are offering more than you are."

"Anything's better than not getting paid," Bala-Tik snarled. "Talon Karrade's got a lot better business prospects and he's asked me and my boys to join up with his organization."

Chewbacca let out a roar of laughter, and Han couldn't suppress the grin. He knew Talon, a guy with more dreams than brains. The man was a good enough sort, but he had delusions of grandeur. Smugglers didn't make alliances, no matter what was being offered. Yet Han Solo held up his hands defensively. These two seemed unreasonably angry. Sure, they had had a dry year. But they could make it back!

"Look," he said, "I have three potential jobs that have popped up. I need to check them out but make a decision, but as soon as I do, you will be the first to know!"

"If this doesn't pay out," Tasu-Leech growled, "Then me and my boys will leave your Salvage Company and go with the Hutts."

"When the man is right, he's right," Bala-Tik said, spinning on his heel. With a flick of his fingers, the members of his crew turned around and headed off.

Soon, Han Solo was alone with Chewbacca and leaned forward, resting his forehead on his hands. Chewbacca asked a question and Han shrugged. He was getting too old for this sort of thing. And to tell the truth, he wasn't exactly up for continuing to go out on these bantha chases. The captains of his company had valid concerns. The two last jobs had been a bust, and unless one of the prospects panned out, he was going to lose two-thirds of his company.

"Being respectable has made me old," he admitted.

Chewbacca growled a few times and Han smirked. "Yeah, yeah," he said, "But you're a wookie. Wokies never get old."

He pushed back the chair and stood up. Grabbing the large glass from the table, he drank it down. It was imitation Alderaan Black Wine, not as good as the originals his wife still had. The Alderaan Exiles had been able to find a new world to settle, but Leia complained that what they produced was simply not the same.

He shrugged, set it on the table, and flicked a few coins onto the table, payment for drink and the tip. Pulling on his jacket, he headed for the exit.

 **First Order Stormtrooper Training Facility, Unknown Regions**

Sam Skyler picked up the stormtrooper helmet. At long last! He'd be given an assignment! He had trained since the age of thirteen, running away from dead-beat parents on the Unknown Regions world of Zellana. He'd excelled in the Stormtrooper Cadet Corps training program, among the top five of his class. He'd been shuffled from base to base, doing mostly training tours. His most recent was at Facility 13, the First Orders' main shipyards.

He wasn't one of the Selected, as the Cadets called the troopers that had been taken and trained since birth. No, he was a volunteer, who believed in the First Order. He had no idea what Coruscant was. He had never seen their brothers within the Galactic Empire. He didn't even know if the Force, which so many cadets spoke with in awed reverence, was an actual thing.

He did know though that he felt like he belonged. He had purpose, something he never would have had on Zellana. On that backwater world you either produced kids or food. Nothing else. He never would have known about anything else had he not seen the FO transport that landed on the planet and bought food from the farmers. He had worked hard ever since, and as he saw his dark skin in the reflection of his helmet, he smiled and turning it around, slipped it on.

It was raining where he gathered with the Cadet Corps. Rain fell in a torrent over the cadets, making the words from the Commandant all but impossible to hear. The constant rattling of rain against his helmet would have driven him mad, had he not been so excited. Sam remained straight though, keeping himself as still as possible. He wasn't sure how long he stood there, but soon enough, the Corps was dismissed.

He followed three of his bunk-mates back to their shared room within the barracks. They waited until they entered the room, the door shooting jets of hot air that swept away any remaining rain drops, to began talking excitedly.

"We'll get our assignments at 0600, right when we wake up!" one of his cadet friends called out. The kid was not even twenty, but his hair was the most vibrant red that anyone had ever seen. "I'm going to go into the Marine Trooper Corps! You just wait and see!"

"Come on Nines," one of the boys jested them him. "You'll be lucky if they don't assign you to permanent waste-recycle duties!"

"Oh, give it a break! None of you can ever amount to more than janitorial duty," their third bunk-mate, a female with color as dark as Sam's said, putting her helmet on the pegged board that fit each helmet in exact measurements.

"Oh yeah?" Nines asked, "And what do you think you will get?"

"I'll be in the Chrome Dome Division, serving under Captain Phasma!" she proclaimed.

"You kidding!" the other boy scoffed. "You aren't even in the top thirty of the class. How are you going to get into that! It's for the elites and we all known Captain Phasma had a riot baton so far up her…."

Sam didn't hear what anatomical part of the body that had become a host to a rather painful and large mob control device. No, as his friends pretend to fight, he stripped down to his military grey undergarments and lay back on his bed, opening up a holographic book called _Fall of the Jedi_ and read about the wizards who fell before the might of an Empire and its righteous leader.

"We're going to play Sabacc in the Mess Hall," Nines called to him as he started the third chapter. "You coming?"

"Nah," he said, "I want to get further into this book."

"You are a stormtrooper now!" his female comrade shook her head. "Not a sith spitting book-worm."

"Don't worry," Sam assured them, "I'll be fine."

"Okay then," Nines drummed his hands on the metal over his bunk like he was one of those Wookie Heavy Rockers that Sam absolutely despised, "Have it your way, Finn."

Sam smiled at the nickname as his friends filed out of the room, looking to have fun.


	3. Destiny's Call

**Chapter 2: Destiny's Call**

 **First Order Star Destroyer** ** _The Finalizer_**

Sam couldn't have been happier to be entering the hanger of the _Finalizer._ It was the command ship of the First Order's Second Fleet, commanded by General Hux. His orders had been waiting for him in the morning, and his orders were to report immediately to the _Finalizer_ where he was to report directly to the Chrome Dome Divisional Commander

His friends had been jealous, to say the least. Nines was being sent to Riot Control Battalion on the First Orders capitol world of Leena-sa Prima. He wasn't going anywhere special, he wasn't going to be front lines like he had imagined but he had put on a brave face, despite his disappointment. His other buddies, Jax, the only other guy in their bunk room, was being sent to the _Supremacy,_ a true honor. It was the flagship of the entire First Order, the only _Mega_ -Class Star Destroyer in the entire fleet. And his female comrade, Lexxa, was being sent to Rancor Division, a division of the First Orders Marine Corps which specialized in boarding actions.

Promises had been made to keep in touch, but as he stood around, excitement washed away memories of those promises. A deck officer stood outside of the unloading ramp, accepting identification cards and sliding them into a box-shaped BB-E droid. Unlike the spherical ones, the BB-Es were completely black, except for red lights that flickered at random spots on the body.

"Identification card," the deck officer requested to Sam, holding up his hand. Sam placed the card into his expectant hand and he slid the card into the BB-E. Three beeps sounded, and he pulled it out. The officer glanced at the Data PADD in his hands. "Hmmm. Stormtrooper Designation FN-2187, Skylar, Sam. Nickname 'Finn'. You are to report to Captain Phasma's office. Do you know the location?"

"No sir," he shook his head. "Just that I was to…."

"Yes or no will do," the deck officer cut him off. "Go straight to the back of the hanger and enter the turbolift. Her office is located on the Officers Deck, Deck 7. Her name is on the door."

"Thank you, sir," Sam replied as the deck officer handed him his identification card. With that, he stepped off, headed towards the turbolift. His luggage, what little there was, would be transported to his quarters, so he didn't need to worry about them.

He found the office without too much troubles, thanks to a Special Forces Pilot who shared his turbolift. He came to the door, and pushed the door chime button. The door slid open, and in he stepped.

The room was extremely spartan. A large staff stood propped against a corner, but outside of the table and single chair, there was almost nothing else in the office. A small console was slid out of the desk and he _saw_ her! Captain Phasma, commander of Chrome Dome Division! She sat behind the desk, her eyes fixed on something on the console.

Sam had, frankly, never seen a woman he found more attractive. Even sitting down, her sheer size was evident. She was a large woman, but it came from height and continual training. Her blond hair was cropped short, with her hair not falling further than her earlobes. Her eyes, even though they weren't looking at him, was a clear and precise blue that seemed more artifical than real. Even the scar that ran from just in-front of her ear and down to her shoulder seemed rather sexy. Yet, despite how attractive hoe might find her, he knew that she could easily break any person and half, and he was _that_ attracted to her to even try.

For a few long moments nothing was said. Sam stood at attention, his back ramrod straight. He did not allow the awkwardness to crack his twelve years of training. So he stood there and waited.

"FN-2187," she said at long last. "You have a very impressive record. Nickname of 'Finn'. I am surprised by the fact you did so well in the Academy. You volunteered for the service. You weren't Selected."

Sam's shock must have been evident on his face because Phasma snorted. He had never heard an officer call those taken at birth and trained in the ranks their entire lives as such. They were called 'Generation Resurrection', because it was they who were trained from birth to be able to bring a resurrection of Palpatine's glorious New Order.

"What? Did you think that only Cadets used that moniker of those kidnapped at birth to serve the First Order?" she asked.

"I can't say I did, Ma'am," he replied, keeping his reply brief and simple.

"I volunteered for the service," Phasma recalled, "I found the choice of here being far more optimal than what was back home. People fighting over a single acre of land. No, out here, we have empires to conquer and make! What do you know of me, FN-2187?"

"That you are one of the best commanders of the First Order, ma'am," he promptly replied, "You are assigned to Kylo Ren to hunt down any Jedi that haven't yet been killed. You helped attack the Jedi Academy on Ossus."

"Correct, but only partially," Phasma said, "Me and Kylo Ren are as close as one can be to the Jedi Killer. I wasn't _assigned_ to work with him. I was asked personally by him. Do you know why? Because my division is the best. You are the 2187th currently active member of my division, and I expect you to perform to the best of your abilities. I will expect nothing less.

"We go up against Jedi and their fanatical friends. We have had to eliminate entire villages before because they refused to surrender the Jedi they were harboring. I expect you to observe the Military Code of Conduct at all times, such as your helmet will remain on your head at all times that you are not in your quarters with your squad mates or ordered by a superior. I expect ten hours of blaster practice every cycle. You will also spend the same amount of time practicing hand-to-hand combat and physical training to keep yourself in peek physical condition."

"Do you understand these things?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Sam replied, acknowledging the order. He figured that it would be something like this. Phasma was known to be one of the hardest driving commanders of the military. But as she said, they were going up against those filthy Jedi scum. "May I ask one question, Ma'am?"

"One." She said.

"Are we going to have a chance to kill Luke Skywalker?" he asked.

She only gave her a smile that spoke of vicious intent and confirmed that Sam Skylar would have a chance to fight the greatest living legend of their time. If he were only patient and followed her orders.

 ** _Millennium Falcon_** **, in orbit over Chandrila**

It was late at night, the Falcon on the night side of the one-time capitol of the New Republic. Ghent could be heard snoring from his quarters in the back of the ship, even from the cockpit where Kira stood on a step-stool. With a yank of her hand, the panel popped off the fuel-line next to the co-pilot seat. Glancing in, she saw the offending piece of machinery, that glowed green, indicating it was working.

"There you are, you karabast piece of filth!" she growled. Reaching into her tool kit that she had set across the arm-rests of the co-pilot side rear passenger seat, she grabbed an electrical screw-driver and set to work. She was on the tenth bolt, _why did they have to have so many bolts for a fuel compressor_ , she heard a gruff voice.

"What are you doing?"

She started, squealing in surprise as she slammed against the ceiling. She let slip an epithet that made Han Solo go, "Language!" She was still holding her head when Han grabbed her by the waist. She had begun to sway and had been about to fall.

"Didn't mean to scare you," he apologized as Kira blinked a few times and moved her mouth around, shaking her head. "I heard you making noises up here and I wanted to see what was up."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, swiveling the co-pilots seat so she could sit. She clutched at her chest, her heart thundering throughout her chest, threatening to break ribs and jump right out. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't," Han assured her. "But you still haven't answered my question, Kira. What are you doing in here?"

"Our friendly New Republic technicians installed a compressor on the fuel line," she said.

Han frowned, "What? They know that hyperdrives can't handle compressors! Too much stress gets put on it!"

"I know!" Kira replied emphatically, "I tried getting the Chief Engineer to take it off, but he said that old junkers like this don't even need a hyperdrive."

Han's eyes knitted together in a scowl and he let slip a torrent of colorful phrases that made Rey blush a little to hear. Many of them she had _never_ heard outside of particular holographic vids that she certainly hoped Han would never find. They weren't exactly….appropriate.

So there Kira and Han Solo sat, Han shaking his head at the stupidity of these so-called "experts". His ship was as good a ship as any had ever flown. Better than most, in fact! It had survived two Death Stars, for crying out loud!

"I couldn't stand a moment longer thinking about that monstrosity on the fuel lines," Kira informed Han. "I know you want to depart tomorrow morning, so I figured I'd get it pulled out and fixed up beforehand."

"I'll give you a hand with it," Han volunteered.

"Oh no!" Kira gasped, "I can't ask you to do that! I want to myself."

Han gently put his hand on Kira's. "Kira," he said gently, "You don't need to keep proving yourself."

"No, I'm not!" she argued defensively, "I just…."

"Kira," Han cut her off. "Yes you are. You don't need to. I'm not going to abandon you."

 _My parents weren't going to either_ , she thought sourly. No, that wasn't fair. Just because her parents had, didn't mean Han was going to. Him or Chewbacca. She was part of his crew! Crew came before family!

Han settled back, letting go of her hand. He leaned back and gave a smile. "This is still my ship and I like getting my hands a little dirty now and then," he informed her with a lopsided smile. "Actually, I'd like to reward you."

"Reward me?" Kira asked, her eyebrows raising into her head. Her hair was pulled back into the Jakku bun she sported every now and then. Especially when melancholy set in for her abandonment.

"Yeah kid," Han nodded once. "Chewie really likes you and thought it was high time you got rewarded. You appreciate the _Falcon_ just as much as I do, you even love it, this old bucket of bolts."

"It was nothing," she said, feeling her cheeks warm in a new wave of shy embarrassment. "You and Chewie have been so good to me, that it's become my home."

"Exactly," Han agreed, "That's why I am rewarding you. It's been almost six full years since you joined us, and now, you are choosing our next job."

Kira's mouth dropped open. She had never been given the chance to choose the job. Ghent got to choose, and Chewie chose a job every now and then, but most times it was Han who did the choosing. To be given the chance, it was a great honor.

He held out a PADD to her, which she took. She looked at the list, there was three.

"Lando sent me the location of a few derelict Imperial light corvettes that have been floating dead in space above Vaardos."

"I'd like to see Lando again," she smiled with fondness at the name, looking at the info provided. It looked promising. "He's a nice guy."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Han grumbled. "The next one comes from a minister in the New Republic. Jakku has been reopened to scavenging operations, and there's a few Star Destroyers near the Gozan Badlands to be stripped."

Kira didn't say anything as she scanned the information. Jakku. She never wanted to go there again. The silence that filled the cockpit was heavy and oppressive. Memories, hard to swallow, flooded her head. Being beaten by thugs for a small bit of bread, starving on a nightly basis. Days without water because all the water had dried up around Niima Outpost.

"Kira?" Han asked, cutting through the fog of the memories that threatened to drown her.

She snapped back to full awareness, and her fingers cramped. She looked and noticed how hard she was gripping the PADD, turning the skin white. She took a deep breath and relaxed, shaking her head.

"What's this last one?" she asked, clearing her throat. She was _not_ going to talk about it.

"Maz sent me it," he said, "Imperial Warehouse of the planet Wayland. She discovered it on a meet up with pirates."

"Maz sent this?" Kira nearly laughed. "Chewie would love that."

Han laughed as well. Chewbacca knew full well the affection that Maz Kanata had for him. He would hide in the Falcon like an overgrown baby, trying to avoid her. But Maz always found him. Kira had once talked about it with Maz and the tiny, wrinkled alien had winked behind her magnification glasses and said, "One day you'll understand."

"Go ahead and choose," Han said, "And on the morrow we will leave."

She looked at all three, trying to avert her gaze from that hateful second option. She was not choosing Jakku. So that left only Vaardos and Wayland. A warehouse was all well and good, but what could a warehouse fetch that a couple of light corvettes in Grade-C condition? She went to push the accept button when she froze.

There it was. A slight musical sound in her ears. She frowned, as a little wind seemed to tousle her hair. She looked up at Han and frowned. He was looking at her, an eyebrow raised. She looked back down at the PADD and went to push the Vaardos acceptance button.

" _No_."

She hovered her finger over it. She had clearly heard a man's voice. A younger man's voice, a few years older than she was.

"Why not?" she asked aloud.

"What was that?" Han asked, still looking at her.

The voice did not speak again though, and Kira shook her head. She went to push the button but again she heard the voice, " _Your destiny does not lie in Vaardos."_ Frowning slightly, looking around once more to see who was speaking, she shifted her fingers with dread towards the Jakku button. She hesitated…. _"The way forward is not towards your past."_

"Do you hear that?" Kira asked, glancing at Han frowning.

"Hear what?" Han asked. He looked strange, his right leg crossed over his left leg. He was leaned forward, his elbow planted on the raised leg and hand cupping his chin. He was looking at Kira with an odd look on his face. As if he was seeing something from long ago.

Kira looked back at the PADD and moved her finger over the Wayland Accept button. The music, which had played like a whistling through her head suddenly stopped and she pushed the button.

 _"It is your destiny."_

She stood up and returned the PADD to Han. Turning her back on Han, she grabbed the electronic screwdriver and went back to work on the tenth bolt. Han sat there for several long moments, watching Kira with a strange look in his eyes.

 **D'Qar, Ileenium System**

Leia sat at the circular table, listening to the reports that were being spoken to her. The First Order had gone extremely quiet along the borders of the New Republic, and she felt ill at ease. She couldn't put her finger on it. But something big was up. Admiral Ackbar sat to her right hand, nodding as the squadron leader of Red Squadron had done recon along the edge of the border. His scans indicated nothing.

"The First Order must think we are fools if we do not see that this is the pretext to something big happening," the Mon Calamari admiral shook his head. "If only we had Commander Dameron back yet. His report would be most illuminating."

"May I ask as to how long it will be until the Commander returns?" Red Squadron Leader, a human male asked.

"Not for a few more days," Leia replied. It wasn't exactly sensitive information and everyone in this room she trusted implicitly. "I just don't want to risk contacting him unless its absolutely necessary. We don't want Black Squadron Leader to be killed behind enemy lines, or even captured. He's our best pilot and he knows enough to do us real damage."

"You don't think he would give the location of this base away?" Captain Idrosen Gawat, a human male with grey hair and tan-skin asked. "Or give away our secrets, do you ma'am?"

"Trust me, Captain," Leia said. "Torture can break even the strongest. I know from personal experience."

The Resistance Division was one of three military divisions of the New Republic that had its location blacklisted for obvious reasons. Only the military personnel on site knew of it. Skywalker Division, named after her brother, was the largest of the black-listed divisions. The last was the _Rogue One_ Division, named after that heroic group that had set in motion the final victory over the Emperor and his empire. Each had a small fleet of half a dozen ships.

"In good news," Admiral U.O. Statura said, breaking through an awkward silence, "I have just been in contact with my brother. He says he was able to pull a ton of strings and we will be getting the very first _Warhammer_ -Assault Ship that they're going to be cranking out of Kuat Ship Yards….."

The door to the room opened and in stepped a young woman in her early twenties. There was a joke around the base that this woman, Lieutenant Kaydel Ko Connix, was actually the daughter of General Leia. She did indeed look very much like Leia when she had been that young, including wearing similar hair buns.

"This is a closed meeting," Admiral Ackbar barked, turning to her.

"I know sir," she gulped. Despite all her time in the Resistance, she still wasn't used to both authority figures and aliens. She had grown up on a planet with only one race. "But the General told me to interrupt anything if it was absolutely important."

"This really is an important meeting, Lieutenant," Leia said, glancing over at her. "Can it not wait?"

"You have a message, ma'am," the young woman replied.

"Then it can wait," Leia replied, lifting a hand to dismiss her.

"It's a Code 66 ma'am," Connix said and Leia froze. "You told me it was absolutely necessary for you to hear it."

"You have delivered the message, Lieutenant," Statura said, frowning. "Now, you are dismissed."

The young woman nodded her head and backed out, closing the door behind her. The officers fell into talking among themselves, joking about insubordinate junior officers. _Give them a little authority, and see what it gets you!_ was the common sentiment.

"Now, we can get back to business….."

"Clear the room!" Leia ordered, her voice bellowing across the room, cutting off the voice of Statura. Glancing back and forth between each other, the Captains rose and left. Admiral Statura remained seated. "You to, Admiral."

General Leia was second-in-command, but the Admiral grumbled as he followed the order. Ackbar leaned towards her. Leia pushed a button in front of her, and the doors locked behind her, and a small snap-hiss informed her that Privacy Mode had been engaged.

"Code 66?" he asked. "I only have heard 66 used once in any type of military code. And that was Protocol 66."

A holographic communication screen slid out of the table before her and a signal showed that the message was being transferred. D'Qar was running off of older communication systems, so it took around a minute for messages to transfer.

"What few people know is that the Jedi Order actually is pretty numerous, with about two hundred Jedi as of six years ago," she informed Ackbar, "After the attack on the Jedi Academy on Ossus, with thirty-seven of them killed in a single swoop, the rest tried to fight back, but after many of them were killed, my brother ordered them to scatter and go into hiding. Only the New Council knows where they all are, but that's because they are the strongest. Code 66 is the code the hiding Jedi will use to communicate with people."

"Because no one would assume that the Order would use the number of the Protocol that signaled their extermination," Ackbar smiled as he understood. "And only those closest to the Jedi would understand it."

Leia was about to nod and agree with more explanations when the symbol for the New Jedi Order appeared on the screen. A yellow bladed lightsaber extended with reys of yellow sun-bursts exploding in a circle, like a sun. She lifted her hand and found herself trembling for some reason. She'd never had a problem with the Jedi Order, outside of a long running disagreement between her and the oldest member of the New Council, an ancient Jedi named K'rukh. He firmly believed she should have taken time to really train and hone her Jedi abilities, while she had been adamantly against submerging herself into the Jedi ways.

What even Luke didn't understand was just how unsettled she was to have learned that Darth Vader, the man that had tortured her over the course of two days, had been her biological father. She had never really been able to separate the idea that the man who gave birth to her and the man she had met had been related. Luke had always talked about them being two different individuals, Anakin who had been a Jedi, and Vader. But they had been the same people to Leia. And if this man could fall to the Dark Side, then how was she certain that she wouldn't fall as well if she had trained?

She let out a slow breath and pushed the button to accept the call. The symbol vanished, and in it's place she saw the very last thing she expected.

"Jacen?" she asked, her eyes growing wide and her mouth dropping open in surprise.

"Hi Aunt Leia!" the boy said, waving his hand to Leia.

At first she couldn't help but feel a swell of joy at seeing her nephew. It had been almost four years since they had last seen each other. She had feared that her nephew had died, and that was why Luke had completely fallen off the radar.

Yet despite the wave, she saw an extremely tired young man. He was only fifteen, but he looked older, far older than a boy his age should have been. The planet he was on was currently in its night cycle, but even in the flickering firelight she could see the haunted look in his eyes. The exhaustion that was not buried by the robes he wore.

"Is your sister alright?" Leia asked.

"Jaina is sleeping right now," he told her. "It's been a hard few years."

"That's good," Leia couldn't suppress a chuckle. "Not that it's been a hard few years but that your sister is alright."

"Yeah, I understand Aunt Leia," Jacen said with a sigh. "Is this line secure? Are we alone?"

She remembered a boy that had been quick to laugh and play. His twin sister had been a doll and the apple of her parents eye. Luke had married an ex-Imperial agent that defected from the Empire about five years after the surrender, and it had been this woman called Mara Jade that convinced Luke to start the Jedi Order up again twenty years ago. They had been told that they weren't ever going to have kids but the Force had other plans.

"The line is secure, but we aren't alone," she explained to him.

"We aren't?" Jacen asked, and his eyes darkened with….was it fear?

"It's me, son," Admiral Ackbar said, sticking his lumpy-head in. "Admiral Ackbar. You can trust me."

Jacen stared at Ackbar, then relaxed slightly. "Dad said you were one of those we could trust," he said, but he sounded even more tired than before. "He said you were a true friend to the Jedi."

"Indeed," Ackbar agreed, somehow managing to sound comforting even through his watery-growly voice. "I knew your grand-father during the Clone Wars. And I knew your father during the Rebellion. There are many stories I could share with you."

For the first time during the call, Jacen seemed to liven and a small smile threatened to break on a face that evidently hadn't had much to smile about.

"As interesting as it would be to hear all that," Leia cut in. "You aren't supposed to call from hiding unless its important. How did you even find me? We haven't been here for all that long."

"Grandfather told me," the boy said.

Well, that wasn't really helpful. "What do you need, Jacen? How can I help you?"

"How can we help you?" Ackbar interjected.

"I've had a Force vision, Aunt Leia," Jacen said, his voice dropping. "I know all about Snoke. Where he comes from. What his agenda is. What he plans to do with Ben."

"Ben?" Leia asked, frowning. "He's dead. Died during the attack on the Academy."

"No," Jacen shook his head. "Ben is alive! He's the one called Kylo Ren."

"The Jedi Killer!" Ackbar hissed.

No, no! History can't be repeating itself! She assumed that Ben had died after running away from the Academy. But to learn he had fallen to evil? No, it can't be.

"He's coming for us," Jacen said. "He's been ordered by Snoke to come hunt us down. He thinks we can lead him to my dad. But we don't know where he is and we aren't strong enough to stop him! Uncle Han was the one who dropped us off, we couldn't tell him even if we wanted to!"

"Wait," Leia stopped him, "Your uncle knew you were alive?"

"Yes, Dad had him drop us off into hiding with a friend of his," Jacen said, but his eyes were pleading. There was no time, and he believed every word he was saying. "Help us, Aunt Leia, you are our only hope."

She heard the words. The words as if from memory. Words from decades ago, when it was a most desperate hour. She couldn't let them fall into….Ben's hands, if he was indeed still alive. Why wouldn't Luke tell her about Ben?

"We'll get you help," Leia said, "The person we send will have the passphrase 'By the Light of Lothal's Moons'. Don't worry Jacen, help is on the way."

 **New Republic X-Wing, Hyperspace**

Poe looked at the files that had been secured from the facility. It saddened him. Instead of copying over the project files like they had been instructed, Snap had accidentally copied over the Military files. Much of this was stuff he already knew, but it saddened him to know that Timmin Snap Wexley had died copying over the wrong files.

He flipped through each files, giving it a quick scan. There was no way he could get through the entire archive they had downloaded, but it gave him something to do. BB-8 sent a small beep that translated on his console screen. He smiled at the text.

"Yeah, I'm still awake buddy," he replied, "Just doing some reading."

The reply wasn't as cute as one would expect to come from the round ball. Poe rolled his eyes at the response.

"Ha ha, very funny," he snorted. "Actually, most of this is intel we already have. Such as the _Resurgence_ -Class Star Destroyer and the newer models they are planning to put out. There was a nice one a while back about a Special Forces TIE-Attacker that has only one wing. Yeah….that's what I thought to but it looks rather promising, all the specs I red seem to agree that it's possible and almost at testing. I'd like to see the results on it, see if it can actually fly!"

He skipped through a few files he had already seen before. Battle Tactics and plans that were two decades old and having been replaced by newer formations, all which he had seen first hand. One caught his eye though and he paused.

 _Starkiller Base Readiness Report_. He looked at the title but it wasn't the title so much as the man who wrote it. No, recorded it! It was General Hux! He had heard a lot about the man from stormtroopers when he had posed as a First Order officer, but he had never actually _seen_ him. The file was pass-code locked, but luckily for him, he had been able to acquire a code that could access it, cracking his fingers, he typed it in and the file opened.

"Mother of moons!" Poe exclaimed as he opened the file. "If he isn't the gingeriest ginger that was ever gingered!"

Standing before him on the display screen was a man who while he may have been short, it was hard to tell for certain since he was by himself, General Hux seemed tall, drawing himself up to his full height. His hands were clasped behind his back and he stood erect. He had a pointed nose, and a slim face, a frown seemed etched permanently seared onto his face. His eyes glared through the video as if he hated the entire world and he wanted everyone to know his absolute disdain for them. His gingery hair was perfectly coifed.

"I wonder how many souls he had had to steal to do such a perfect coif," Poe grinned and with a push of a button, the video began to play.

"To First Order Supreme Military Command: As I reported last month, Starkiller Base's position remains completely secure," the man said. Good heavens, his voice was clipped and precise, as if had been rolled off an assembly line. "And the weapons are nearing completion. The Supreme Leader's less than optimistic appraisal of the situation will be rectified as he sees that the time and effort and resources devoted to the Starkiller Program is on schedule and we will be operational for R-Day."

 _R-Day_? Poe had never heard of an R-Day. What was this program? Starkiller Base had been a name he had heard floated around by officers and enlisted personnel alike in the Order, but he had never brought it up in conversations to get info on it. That may have been an oversight, now that he thought about it.

"Well, next time I go undercover," he said aloud, the General continuing his report.

"Our simulations have proven the theory that we can fire the gun one every two hours," the General continued, "And if you follow along with the simulations provided, you will be able to see the deadly effect the Starkiller Gun has." A simulation appeared and a 3D image of a planet surface appeared, a long tube sticking from the ground. It fired a large cylindrical shell and something appeared right in front of the shell. It looked like a hyperspace portal. Then, it exited out hyperspace and zipped through a system filled with several planets and a star. "As the shell slams into the systems star, it will flash three times, as you can see. These flashes will spread an ion burst that will spread throughout the system and within a few minutes the entire solar system will be immobilized. Then, after that is done the star will go super nova and spread through the system. The entire system would be destroyed within an hour at most and there will be no survivors."

The simulation was intensely disturbing. Poe had seen a bunch of crazy things in his day, and he had seen old footage of the destruction of Jedha and Alderaan. But what he was seeing made those seem like childs-play.

"We have already tested it with some success in the-" the video paused as the screen flashed out a message. _Incoming Message._ He frowned. He was under radio silence and wasn't supposed to break it unless it was absolutely necessary. Reaching over, he pushed the call accept button and General Leia's face appeared.

"General!" Poe said, his eyes widening. "I'd stand but it'd be a little cramped with the size of the cockpit. And I could pop the canopy but the vacuum of space would…"

"I'm really not in the mood from your jokes, Commander," she said shortly, cutting him off.

Poe immediately sobered up and nodded. Leia was usual incredibly easy to work with and for the most part she had been incredibly relax with how he went about doing things. Yet when she wasn't in the mood, he knew well enough to lay off.

"What can I do for you, ma'am?" he asked.

"I need you to take a side-trip and collect some passangers," she said.

He shook his head. "No can do, General," he said. "I've been looking at some of the files and one is very time-sensitive and I honestly feel wasting time would be not in the Republic's best interests."

"These are two very important people," the General informed him. "They are Jedi."

Poe stared for a few long seconds. Jedi? He had never met a Jedi but he had heard so much about them from his parents. What they could do, the powers they had….it seemed a bit like a lot of nonsense. But here was his General, telling him he was going to meet two!

"I really don't think it's wise," Poe said, "Not with what I've learned…."

"Please Poe," she said, her voice taking on an air of desperation. "They're my niece and nephew. They're family and they need help."

Poe felt a horrible sinking feeling in his gut. This was not a good idea. He knew it was bad. He only had the one seat, and he didn't know how he'd get them onboard. Technically his navigator seat was only good for one person. But as he looked at the General, he sighed.

"Alright, ma'am," he nodded his head. "Where am I going?"

"To Jakku."


	4. The Mountain and the Sacred Village

**Chapter 3: The Mountain and the Sacred Village**

 ** _Resurgent-_** **Class Star Destroyer,** ** _The Finalizer_**

Sam lifted the heavy baton with thick padding and smashed it down the raised baton of the stormtrooper that stood opposite him. He swung back, parrying an underswing slash that would have taken him under the chin and broken a tooth had he not stopped it. He held the baton down and punched forward the circular buckler shield in his hand. It hit the trooper hard in the face and he backed up a few feet, shaking his head.

Sam let out a roar and charged at him. His comrade recovered and dropping to a crouch, placed a hand on the floor and swept his leg outwards. Sam didn't catch the leg sweep until it was already sliding his foot out from under him. He hadn't even landed on the ground when the other stormtrooper brought his baton down. Sam gritted his teeth as it hit between the junction of his breast and back plates.

"Ten minute, rest!" the sergeant barked, his order cutting through the men. "Then report to the firing range."

"Yes, Sergeant," the stormtroopers shouted back, and Sam joined in. The trooper held out a hand to Sam, and even though he wasn't able to see in the helmet, he could almost feel the smile on the helmet was plastered over his squad-mates face. 'Slick' they called him, even though he was officially FN-2816, the trooper who arrived right before he had.

"Good match, Finn," the trooper said, his voice modulated by the helmet to come out as gruff, but Sam knew Slick sounded anything but gruff. Indeed, he had a high-pitched voice. "You are almost half-descent."

"That's half better than you," Sam said, and Slick laughed, slapping him on the back as they walked over to the rest of their squad. A small jet of fresh air pumped into the helmet, helping relieve some of the moisture build-up from sweat and stale air. Phasma had not been joking about no one removing their helmets unless directly ordered. "I wonder why we are being trained so hard."

"It means we have a mission coming up," FN-2814 informed them. They called him 'Shiny' because he had the most glaring bald head that a light-skinned human could have.

"Are you sure?" Slick asked. It was hard to read body-language in the full-suits, but Slick was positively shivering with excitement.

"Yep," he nodded. "I was here for the last two missions. Before each mission our training was ramped up. The first mission I was on, oh, about three months back, was after a Padawan. A clone, if I remember correct. On the second mission, we went after a member of the Jedi Council. A human named Kyle Katarn."

Sam had heard of Kylo Katarn. He had been the contact on Scarif that had transmitted plans from the traitor Galen Erso back before the Death Star was completed to spies within the Rebellion. But to know someone who actually had faced off against a member of their vaunted Council? It was simply amazing to Sam.

"Did you get to fight either personally?" he asked, eager to know if he would be able to match his prowess against a Jedi.

"Nah," Shiny shook his head. "They're left for the Jedi Killer. We suppress their allies and try to keep them pinned. It is possible they break out. We actually had up to 2850 troopers in the division. But they met stiff resistance and a Jedi actually got among the troops. I was brought in right after that."

The division had lost almost forty troopers? To _one Jedi?_ The thought of it made Sam shiver. He hoped no one had seen that. He wanted to look tough and brave!

"These Jedi are still flesh and blood, just like the rest of us," FN-2415, a woman whose father was actually a New Republic senator secretly supporting the First Order said with conviction. "Kylo Ren has proven that. Time and again."

"I wonder who we'll be up against," Slick cracked his knuckles. "I'd like to go up against Republic Commandos. See if they are all that tough as they make out to be."

"It won't be anybody who has Republic troops nearby," Shiny cut into his fantasies.

"Why not?" FN-2415, who had never given them a name and allowed no nicknames to be given her, asked.

"We don't want to start the war too early," Shiny informed the soldiers. "No, so it'll probably be at most local militia. Either way, we'll get a taste of action, if we're lucky!"

"Lucky?" Sam asked. "What do you mean?"

"Even though the division will be going, do you honestly think that over two thousand stormtroopers will attack a world, especially if it's in Republic space?" the veteran demanded. "It's already pushing it, dropping with a Star Destroyer in the middle of Republic space. Imagine thousands of troops rampaging across it."

It made Same wonder why the Republic would allow such a blatant violation of it's borders to occur. Perhaps the rumors were true. There were many rumors that stated that the New Republic military was small, and the borders weren't that secure. So why hadn't the First Order just swept in and conquered it yet? Surely, they outmatched and outnumbered the Republic military, so why haven't they put an invasion into effect yet?

"War will come soon enough, youngling," Shiny said crossing him arms. "Don't be too eager to rush it any faster than needs be."

 _Easy for you to say,_ Sam shook his head. "Report to the shooting range!" the sergeants voice bellowed over the troopers and walking over to the wall, Sam fell into line, placing the baton and buckler shield onto it's pegs on the walls when he was at the weapons rack.

 **Orbit above Wayland**

The static-filled screen did not completely hide the features of Maz Kanata. She was a very odd creature by anyone's standards. Kira was standing in the corridor, having been shooed out of the cockpit by Ghent. She had argued she should be allowed into there, but an arm-wrestle contest found the slicer in it instead of her. The other chair had broken somehow, so she had nowhere to sit.

"Han Solo!" Maz's voice shouted over the intercom. "I am glad you could…shkh…..t here to Wayland. I was a….ker… that you would follow Calrissen's lead over m…shhh….. glad to see I was wrong!"

"We should wait until we get to the planet to speak," Han shouted back over the static. "I can barely hear you."

"What?" Maz demanded back.

"We can't hear you!" Han repeated. "Too much interference from the binary stars!"

"I can't underst-," Maz replied, her frame flickering in and out of focus. "We will… _kerr…_ on the surface. Follow me…"

"This is all your fault kid!" Han turned to Kira and sent her a glare. "I leave you to pick the location, and you send us to a binary system that plays havoc on my comms."

Kira held up her hands defensively. "I'm not responsible for how your comms react," she replied. "I suggested we get a new comms system months ago."

"There's nothing wrong with the systems!" Han shook his head vigorously.

"If I could venture an opinion, Kira is…." Ghent started but stopped as Han stuck a finger so close to him in almost went up his nose.

"If I want you to have an opinion, I'll stick my hand up your nerf herding butt and move your mouth like a puppet!" Han growled. "Chewie, signal the _Guavian Death Gang_ , _Kanjiklub_ and _Endor's Moon_ to follow us on approach."

Chewie sent the message to the rest of the ships. A few seconds later responses came back in just as bad a fashion as Maz had been. Chewbacca hit it once on top of it, trying to make it clearup, but it was an exercise in futility.

Chewbacca turned to Han and then made a barking sound. It sounded like a whine, which Kira immediately identified as he wasn't happy. Han gripped the controls of the ship and growled out at the wookie: "The next person who complains about the comms on this ship is being shown to the airlock!"

Kira pursed her lips as she lifted her hand to hide the laugh that was trying to break free. With that, the _Millennium Falcon_ began its approach run towards the planet, following a small saucer shaped ship to the surface, a small convoy of three ships following them on in.

 **Sacred Force Community, Jakku**

Poe's fighter descended behind a small ridge of sandhills. The engines wined as they turned off, Poe flipping a few switches. BB-8 made an inquiry and Poe nodded his head.

"I don't know how long we'll end up being here, little buddy," he informed him. "So, I'd rather save fuel and energy by shutting down and letting it recharge."

The canopy popped open and Poe undid the straps. As he grabbed the side of the cockpit and pushed himself up, he grunted as the muscles, cramped for so long in the seat, stretched. He clenched his teeth. As much as he enjoyed his X-Wing and flying in it, he had absolutely no joy in sitting in it for days on end!

It was with great relief that he swung his leg over the edge of the canopy and putting his feet on the ladder that extended down, climbed down to the sandy ground. His back popped as he stretched on the ground, and he let out several grunts that sounded more painful than relieved.

A sound of whirring motors behind him sounded the descent on BB-8 from the droid port on the back of the X-wing. He rolled up in the sand and bumped Poe's legs gently. A few inquiring whistles rose from the droid. Poe patted his head.

"I'm okay buddy," he assured the little droid. "I was just stretching, and it felt good."

The droid didn't quiet understand that and made it known. Poe laughed and with a motion of his head, they walked to the top of the sand dune. He was wearing a duster of leather, a grey tunic underneath that had a plunging v-line that exposed his hairy chest. He always kept a spare change of clothes on the X-Wing and the lack of a navigator allowed him to lean back and get more room to change some of his clothes. He hadn't switched out his First Order uniform pants and boots, as he actually liked them. Most pants rode his crotch something fierce, but these pants were form fitting but not so much that they gave him a wedgie.

At the top of the sand dune, he saw a small settlement sprawled out before him. There were no walls around it, but there was perhaps two dozens huts and a community water-well. Fires burned in random places, casting light in the settlement. The moons light shined down across the landscape, giving it a homely look to it. With a motion of his hand, Poe began to descend towards the village.

"Keep an eye on the ship, BB-8," he called behind him. "Make sure no ruffians steal our ship."

The little droid made a defiant whistle that made Poe smile. He may not completely understand the droid, but he knew enough to understand the message behind most of the beeps. No one was getting near their ship unless they wanted to be shocked by the feisty and loyal little droid.

Entering the settlement, he approached a fire where several inhabitants sat around it, chattering to themselves. As he approached, they noticed him and turned to him. Their eyes shone as the light of the fire reflected on them. He held up his hands in a universal display of peaceful intent.

"Hey guys," he said cheerfully, "Good night tonight, eh?"

"It's much as it usually is," one of them, an alien with dropping lips and small face tendrils that fell from the corners of his lips said. "How can we be of assistance, friend?"

"I wish to see Lor San Teka," Poe replied. When he saw the doubtful looks, he remembered what Leia had told him to say to them. "I hear he is a wise man for the Church of the Force, if not the wisest. I wish to join, but there are many questions I have which only he can answer."

The aliens nodded to themselves, and he could see the massive grins across their faces. Religious beings love being told that a potential convert is looking for answers and they were more than happy to oblige. It was a strange thing that really was only found in the religious community of the galaxy. The alien pointed to a hut, a hut that was unlike any others.

"May the wisdom of Lor San Teka help lighten your mind and set you on this path you wish you pursue," the alien said. Poe thanked him and turning from them, began walking towards the hut. The settlers began talking excitedly, and Poe couldn't help but smile as he knew they were talking about him.

Stepping up to the entrance of the hut, he raised a hand to rap his knuckles on the doorframe.

"Enter," a tired voice called out. A voice that was tired from decades of use.

Shrugging, he stepped in. Rags parted before him as he parted them and entered. The inside of the hut was just as simplistic as the outside. There was very little in the way of comfort and convenience. A small console on a table, but that was about it.

In the middle of the room was an old man, sitting across from him behind a fire that burned It was hard to tell the color of the robes that he wore, but they were a mix of dark and light. They were the perfect desert wear it seemed. His eyes were set behind heavily begged eyelids. His hair was shorn close to his head and face chin had stubble from a beard not to long ago shaven.

"Welcome to my humble hut," the old man said. "I am Lor San Teka."

"Thanks," Poe said. The old man waved for him to take a seat and hid did so. "I am….."

"You're Poe Dameron!" a young voice said from his side. He turned his head quickly, reaching for his blaster. He relaxed when he saw it was a young girl. "My aunt sent you here to find us. You didn't want to, because you have really important information for my aunt…"

"Jaina!" Lor San Teka snapped. "What have I told you about reading people's minds?"

The young girl bowed her head, properly chastised. Poe could see that a boy sat next to him, looking at him. Even in the faint glow of the fire, he wanted to saw he saw a similarity. He turned back to the old wise man.

"I didn't know that Jedi could read minds," he said.

"It used to be only a Sith trait," the old man explained. "Ever since the Sith were vanquished, the children that are gaining the Force seem to have more powers than the old. A new generation of Force users is rising in the galaxy, Poe Dameron. I'm not sure the galaxy is quiet ready for the raw strength of this generation."

"Fascinating," Poe said, not completely honest. "I was to pass along a message to let you know I am who I am….."

" _By the light of Lothal's moons,_ " the girl named Jaina said. Poe saw Lor San Teka raise his hand to his eyes and rub them, letting out an exasperated sigh. "I know, I know!" Jaina said, raising her hands. "But I don't know what it means."

"It's the code Fulcrum agents used during the Rebellion," the old man said. "I was one of the first recruits of Fulcrum."

Poe knew that very well. He had met Lor San Teka once, during the early part of his time with the _Resistance_ division. It was shortly after Luke Skywalker disappeared. He assumed that the older gentlemen didn't remember him, which was fine. Especially since he had been acting as Fulcrum himself these past few weeks.

"Those two are Jacen and Jaina Skywalker," Lor San Teka said, waving towards the two.

Poe turned towards them, eyes wide. He hadn't assumed he'd be collecting the children of the Grand Master himself! It was too dark to tell, but he still tried seeing resemblances to their father. The man who stories were told about! How he had broken the Imperial fleet above Jakku by himself, walking through space and using lightning to bring down ships. How he had killed both Vader and his master, the Emperor.

"There is something I must tell you," Lor San Teka asked. With an effort, Poe looked away from the two children. "Something that is of dire necessity to be listened to and acted upon."

Poe leaned forward and prepared to hear what the old man had to tell him.

 **Mount Tantis landing platform, Wayland**

"Han, my boogey!" Maz shouted from her small saucer shaped ship as Han walked down the ramp of the Falcon.

"Maz," Han nodded. Kira, Ghent and Chewbacca followed close behind, with the wookie looking uncomfortable. Kira tried not to let the wookie seeing her grin at his discomfort.

"If it isn't my boyfriend!" Maz said, and running forward, bowled past Kira and Ghent and threw her long bony arms around the wookie's leg. Chewie let out a pathetic whine as he patted Maz on the back.

"You flatterer," she slapped him playfully. Kira may not understand wookie, but she was almost positive he had _not_ flattered her.

The sounds of a ramp descended and out stepped several tall humans and a few aliens, including a Twi'lek female. The leader of the group called out to them, walking across the stone landing platform.

"I see we are finally here," the leader called to Han. "I just hope this isn't another bantha chase."

" _Bantha chase?_ " Maz demanded, letting go of Chewbacca and storming with her hands curled into fists. She stepped up to the human and pointed her finger up at him, shaking it. "Wedge Antilles! You know better then that! If I say something is good, it's good! There is an Imperial warehouse in that mountain that will make us all a tidy fortune."

Kira lowered her head and tried not to make eye-contact with the killer of the Second Death Star. His own hair was holding onto some of its brown, but in the decades following the Galactic Civil War, most of it had turned grey, with the last remnants of the brown barely holding on. Han Solo was completely grey, but Kira thought that Wedge looked a handsome rogue.

"It better be," another voice shouted. Kira looked over at Bala-Tik walking over with his eyes glaring. "We usually do salvage work. Raiding old Imperial warehouses doesn't fetch as much as salvage."

"Between our five way split you'll be more than compensated for the trip," Maz sniffed, "Perhaps then you can do something about that thing you call a ship."

"Hey! The _Guavian Death Gang_ is as fine a ship that has ever been produced!" he snapped annoyed. Bala-Tik had always had a trigger temper and was always in a bad mood. At least as Kira had seen it.

Tasu-Leech came up, some of his own boys following behind. Now that everyone was gathered, Maz waved her hand forward. "Okay, gentlemen," she said, "Follow me."

Kira followed the massive group of men, feeling a conspicuous lack of women. Women for the most part didn't join salvage operations like the _Solo Salvage Company_ because they wanted more money and steady pay than what Han was willing to offer. You had to be willing to go for months with a haul and besides maybe five women total, the rest were men.

She wasn't really friends with the other women of the organization. Like the Twi'lek. The Twi'lek that name was Maxim Pakulov, and she was actually married to Wedge and she always was very condescending to Kira. For some reason, Kira seemed to think that Maxim was jealous of Kira and felt threatened by her. Although she could have been imagining things.

Towards the Mountain they went, the mountain standing high above them as a single jagged tooth or the tip of an ancient spear held high to the sky in defiance. As they approached, she listened to the chatter, and stuck close to Chewbacca. Chewbacca set his arm around her shoulder, and she tried to not giggle at the tickle of the long wookie hairs from his massive hands.

A massive steel blast door was slid down the mountain's opening, and they came to a stop. Kira couldn't see past the crowd, so instead she looked up at the blast door. It was massive, both in height and width. She tried to visualize what could fit through it in her mind. A light Imperial Corvette most certainly could. A Hammerhead cruiser, which she absolutely loved the design would have no problems. Was it possible….no….there was no way an Imperial Star Destroyer could fit in there….was there?

"You're up Ghent!" Maz called back to the gangly slicer. "Oh, I forgot to tell you, let me know next time you are swinging by Takodana. There is a woman I'd like you to met. You two would hit off splendidly! She's a slicer just like you!"

The slicer moved forward, lacing his fingers together and pushing them outwards, his fingers popping. As he bent towards a panel he muttered something to himself. He began working on the door panel. It had many of the old-style block keys, and at first Kira wasn't sure he'd be able to crack it. But his fingers worked over it in a steady stream of typing letters. After what seemed like a few minutes of constant chatter, the series of beeps sounded from the console and the slicer stood back up.

"So tell me about this woman you'd like me to met," Ghent said.

"Oh, you'd like her," Maz said cheerfully. "She's a Torgruta, and I know how much you like them. She's interested in a human slicer…"

As Maz continued her description, a massive boom sounded from the Mountain, and the blast doors slid open. The sound of durasteel sliding across ancient stone vibrated through her entire body as the door lifted. Kira moved to the front of the group and her mouth dropped open. She felt her hand touch Han's and their fingers locked as he seemed also speechless.

"Mother of Moons!" he said with more amazement then she had ever heard in his voice.

She had to agree, the sight astounding her beyond all words.


	5. Blasters and Lightsabers

**Chapter 4: Blasters and Lightsabers**

 **Orbit of Jakku,** ** _The Finalizer_**

Kylo Ren's hair brushed against the back of the helmet as he slid it into place. The vocalizer slid into place, sealing the helmet shut. He leaned back, the engines on the shuttle beginning to roar as it lifted from the deck of the hanger bay. Five assault craft had already launched ahead of him, and reaching out with the Force, he could feel the nervous energy that swelled from the confined coffins they believed were impervious landing craft.

He reached down to the surface, and felt them, like twin beacons of massive Force energy. Yes, the children of Skywalker. The very thought brought a fit of anger rising into his chest and he felt the heat of his cheeks as they reddened. He forced it down though. The children were _not_ to be killed and not permanently damaged if at all possible, despite his own rage against them. They had been loved, unlike him. Their father had wronged him, and they should have been forced to endure the agony he had felt.

Yet the Supreme Commander wanted certain Jedi kept alive. They could direct the search for Skywalker, and whom better to know where he was than his own children?

He gripped the hilt of his lightsaber, the leather of his gloves creaking as he squeezed the hilt. In his mind's eye, he imagined that the strength and rage by which he gripped it was so tight that it burst apart.

* * *

"Luke Skywalker did not impose a self-exile on himself because he was beaten," Lor San Teka explained to Poe.

"Then why did he leave then?" Poe asked. "We really need him if we are to have chance of defeating the First Order. I know they are planning something big, and soon. If what I've seen is accurate…"

He couldn't finish the words because of just how distasteful the thought was. The New Republic had been idle too long. His journey through the First Order as a modern-day Fulcrum had proven that the First Order really was a threat, much more than even his darkest nightmares could have conjured. And if this Starkiller Base and its Galaxy Gun was a real thing?

"I don't know," the old man sighed and leaned forward. "I do know one thing though. I may not be a Force user, but I know enough that the Dark Side is smothering everything across the galaxy. Whatever this Snoke is, he's very ancient and only Luke Skywalker stands a chance of thwarting him and returning the Force to balance!"

Poe wasn't sure about that. He turned back to the twins and saw them looking at him. As if they were expecting something that was impossible. Yet, he didn't know what they expected him to do.

"And how am I to find him if he doesn't want to be found…."

"We don't know where Dad is," Jaina interjected, cutting him off even as he thought of the words.

"You must take them to Luke's sister," the wise man told him. "Together, their familial bound will be able to reach him even in the darkest place."

"That's why I'm here, Lor San Teka," Poe said, straightening his back. "I'm hear to take these two back to the General. I don't know how though; my fighter's extra seat is only meant for one person."

Even as he said that the old man had a twinkle in his eye and an amused smile on his face. "General?" he said, as if trying to word on for size. "To me, she is royalty."

Poe heard the words and he let his own smile break his face. "She certainly is," he said ruefully.

Even as they sat there, smiling, the twins gasped and looked at the ceiling. Even as they did so, the heavy cloth that covered the hut entrance burst apart and BB-8 was in, squealing in a high tremble. Poe's face paled as he listened to the little droid.

"They're here?" Poe asked amazed. "How?"

"You must leave with the twins at once!" Lor San Teka jumped to his feet. The twins, their eyes wide, jumped. Poe rose to his feet, and as he stood, he paled as he heard the roar of TIEs.

 **Mount Tantis, Wayland**

Massive rows of battle droids from the Clone Wars stood at rigid attention, cobwebs clinging to them. Yet most were in rather good condition. Rows of the old B1s, droidekas, Super Battle Droids stood in formation. Above the rows was a shelf that was cut into the mountains mouth. Commando droids and Tactical droids stood in rows as well. As if prepared to be activated at any moment.

"These will fetch us a fortune!" Bala-Tik gasped. "The B1s alone will fetch a hundred credits a piece. The Supers a thousand. The destroyers, three thousand! Commandos and Tactical droids, I could finally afford to pay my child support and alimony to my three ex-wives!"

"Bala-Tik, get your people loading these droids onto your ship," Han ordered him. He turned to face the rest of the group. "Wedge, Tasu-Leech, you follow us in. Whoever set this place up gave us a very convenient path between these droids leading to that massive turbolift. Let's move it people. We only have twelve hours to get as much as we possibly can."

New Republic salvage laws only allowed for twelve hours of recovery on planetary sites. After that, it was to be reported to the authorities and they would swing in and put it out of bounds for anyone else who wanted to take a piece of the wealth inside.

Kira followed closely at Han's side. Her eyes scanned the massive interior of the mountain, and all the battle droids. The first two ranks had been pointed towards the door, but beyond that, they were turned to face the path that had been left for people moving through. She had an oppressive feel of hundreds of eyes watching her every move.

"So how did you find out about this place?" Han asked.

"Oh," Maz waved her hand. "There was an old Imp that came flying into my bar. He was trying to sell a location to a top-secret Imperial warehouse. He claimed it was the Emperor's personal trophy facility. I wasn't sure if I believed him on that, but I gave him a few free drinks and I….." she paused for dramatic effect, " _persuaded_ him to sell me the location and data he had on it for a marginally less price."

Chewbacca let out a gruff grunt and Han snorted. "You got that right Chewie. I will _never_ go to your bar with anything I want to sell, Maz."

"Han!" Maz said with a wounded air, "Mi boogie! You know how much I like you and Chewbacca. You would be ones that I would never pay for less than you asked for. Not unless you brought First Order trouble to my bar like you did with those Imperials."

"That was one time!" Han exclaimed.

Maz didn't respond as she turned to Wedge. They had come to the end of the massive atrium with its parade ground square formations of droids. There was the turbolift before them, and then there was two sets of stairs running down from either side. She pointed to the one on the right.

"According to the information I was given," she said, handing him one of a few PADDs. "There is actually a cloning facility down there. There are two thousand Spartii Cloning Cylinders down there."

"Spartii huh?" Wedge said, taking the PADD and reading them. "If that's the case, then that will hold us over. We don't have quite the capacity for two thousand, but we can fit a couple of hundred. But that's only a few hundred."

"If your brother can bring his ship in we could probably put in the rest," Han suggested. "Tell him he'll get a nice percentage of anything he hauls."

"It'll be a few hours before he'd get here if he agrees," Wedge mused, not looking up from the data he was reading. "He's in the Alderaan system doing some geological surveys on the asteroids to see how the planetary pieces have been affected since the destruction. I'll check these out first to see if they are actually what is stated. If it is, I'll give him a call."

With that, he waved to his crew and they peeled off, heading towards the stairs. Maz turned to Tasu-Leech and gave him her infamous wry smile.

"Don't worry, Tasu-Leech," she said. "I have something just as important for you as well. Come along, everyone."

With that, she led them towards the turbolift. It was a massive platform that all twenty-people fit on easily. Maz walked up to the navigation panel at the front of the lift and punched in a floor level. She looked rather odd, a small little creature trying to reach something that had been created with a full-grown human male in mind.

Maz turned around and looked right at Kira. Maz had an ability to make you _know_ that she was giving you her full and undivided attention. Some people found it off-putting, and Kira had never been able to get completely comfortable with it.

"I hear it's your birthday today," Maz said.

"Who told you?" Kira frowned.

"Han told me when he called to tell me when you would all be joining in the hunt for Imperial treasure," Maz said and with a smile, held out a PADD to her. "When a person in my culture reaches the age of nineteen, that is the year they get weaned from their mothers. However, that is not the case with Humans. Happy birthday, my child."

Kira took the PADD and looked at the picture displayed. It was a speeder, sleek and shaped like a half-moon. It was red and taupe with a sleek canopy. A small fin stuck from the back. It was….well….beautiful!

"What is it?" Kira asked.

"It's an airspeeder," Maz said like a smart aleck.

"I know _what_ it is!" Kira replied with a roll of her eyes. "But what model is it?"

"That is a DC0052," Maz explained proudly, "It can fly two thousand kilometers, and can reach a speed of 800 kilometers a second!" The lift came to a stop on a new level and Maz handed Tasu Leech a PADD. "Here we are! The armory of Mount Tantis. It's supposed to be loaded up with blaster rifles, vibro-blades, electro-staffs, detonators and armor of all Imperial trooper types!"

"We'll check it out," Tasu-Leech agreed, taking the PADD and he exited into the armory, his own crew following behind. There was only the crew of _Falcon_ and Maz left on the lift. She typed in one more button and up the lift went.

Kira kept looking at the speeder. Her own personal speeder! How was she to store it though? She couldn't fit it on the _Falcon_. It was too big for that, she was certain of it. Yet Kira owned so very little, that she couldn't help but not think about such things like that.

"Thank you, Maz," she said, "For the speeder I mean."

"You are welcome, young one," Maz replied. "It's a little used, and actually really old. But it is in good condition and it has a very illustrious history. Didn't cost too much either."

"How did you get a speeder like that in good condition without…." Ghent's voice trailed off. "Never mind, Maz, I don't want to know."

Even as Kira slid the PADD into the satchel she carried at her side, the lift came to a stop. And they were again blown away by what they saw. It was a throne room, a massive holographic map projected up in center of the room. The stars were illuminated in different colors, massive blocks. Kira could only guess that it was a holographic representation of the galaxy and the factions on it. Yet, even as she watched, a couple of the planets lost their color, switching to new colors.

Is this in real time? She thought to herself.

"My understanding is that seller claimed this was some sort of throne room for the Emperor," Maz said.

"That does look like a throne up there," Ghent said, moving towards it.

As they exited the throne room and moved around it, a massive statue appeared to their left. Kira glanced up at it, and the statue was in the form of a man. He held a knobbed cane in one hand and the other was extended outwards, as if preparing to bless or condemn. The figure wore a heavy robe but it was the face that drew her. The face was a horribly scarred one, the eyes blazing with an intense hatred that was caught in the fine metal. She could almost have sworn she heard the statue cackling in unadulterated malice.

"Is that who I think he is?" she asked, suddenly afraid of the statue. She involuntarily took a step back, and bumped into the wookie.

"That is," Maz said, turning her beady eyes towards the statue. "The Emperor himself. May his bones forever be black."

"We could make a fortune off that statue," Ghent said. Kira turned to see Ghent, he was sitting on the throne and she felt an instant cold rushing through her.

"No we are not," Han said, scowling as he looked at the statue. "We aren't getting any money off of that thing. And get off of the chair! You and Kira are too….."

His voice trailed off. Kira waited for him to say something, but nothing came out. She turned and saw him staring at a room with a soft glow. He walked down the steps and Kira followed him closely. Into the open door she followed him, to find cases lining the walls. The cases were filled with so many things. Trinkets and bobbles from hundreds of worlds.

She walked up to a case and looked through the glass. Dozens of canisters lined the wall, cylindrical in shape and not much longer than a hand. There was holographic writing under each canister and she read words. They were names, but none of them she could remember.

"What is this place?" she asked, and turned to Han. He was standing before a tank of water that bubbled in a cold green light. In it, a hand and forearm stood, the arm seared off shortly below the elbow. The cauterized flesh still bore the mark of the burns it had received. It could have been installed either this morning or for years.

"It's a trophy room," he said at long last. His voice had a haunted sound to it. "For all the enemies vanquished by the Emperor and his dark servants. We…we aren't leaving anything here. These will be given a proper burial."

He put his hand on the glass tank and muttered something softly that she couldn't hear.

 **Sacred Force Village, Jakku**

"Second squad! Third squad! Flank to the right!" the pauldron-wearing Stormtrooper Commander shouted.

Blaster bolts criss-crossed the night sky, and Sam ran at a crouch behind Shiny. FN-2415 was running to the right, lifting his blaster rifle and firing at shadows within the village. Slick followed to her right, a bolt coming close to him. The Jakku villagers had weapons that fired blue bolts, while the First Order stormtroopers were firing red.

"How many you think there are?" Sam said, slamming against a pile of….something. He had no idea what it was. It looked like cotton, he had seen cotton grown back on his homeworld of Zellena. Yet it couldn't have been cotton.

"I'm thinking maybe a dozen at most," Shiny replied. Blaster fire ripped through the top of the pile they hid behind. Another one passed between the two troopers, and Sam stared at the burning, sizzling hole between them. "We got to move, head towards the two huts over there! FN-2415, Slick! Cover us, me and Finn are pushing up. When we get to the two huts, get to the hut directly before you!"

The others were behind rocks that jutted from the group. "Go!" FN-2415 shouted and popping up from behind the rock, let loose a shower of couple of blaster bolts. A scream from within the village sounded the score of a hit.

Shiny and Finn jumped up and dashed forward at a crouch. Another squad of stormtroopers were pushing forward across the direction they were going. They were firing as they advanced, but one suddenly dropped, screaming as a bolt slammed into his upper-shoulder. One of his comrades crouched down and reached behind the trooper, grabbing the back of his armor. Sam watch as he fell though, the visor of his helmet exploding in a flash of light and white and black plastoid.

"Mother of moons!" he shouted, and like that, they were at the huts.

Between two of them. He was breathing heavily, watching yet a third member of the squad they had run past go down. The fourth dropped the ground, and laying low to the ground, let loose a volley of bolts. Sand kicked up around him as the defenders peppered the ground around him and suddenly he went still. Sam was shaking his head.

"Hey, hey!" Shiny snapped and slammed his fist hard into Sam's chest. "Don't wig-out on me. Finn! I need you here and now!"

He nodded his head vigorously, he was trying to breath and keep focused. "I'm…I'm okay, I'm okay," he said. Fire from a destroyed vehicle, burned behind the sand dune behind them. He could see a squad of stormtroopers moving around the side.

Shiny looked at the other squad members and patted him on the shoulder, pointed. Sam turned to see them. They had made it, and they were switching back and forth, sliding out to fire, then pulling back to allow the other to fire.

"Sith spit!" Shiny growled, "You need to find us a way out, Finn! Where can we go to?"

Sam turned to see what he was talking about, but the hut that stood before them began to glow. After mere seconds the flammable material that was used in it's construction began to have flames eating through it. The other one they were hiding between also began to glow.

Sam looked out, and saw a squad of flametroopers moving among the huts. One suddenly erupted in flames as he was hit in his flammable tank and the trooper screamed, flailing as he was engulfed in his own flames. Sam's visor showed him a read-out even though unasked for, showing his the terrible wounds he was suffering.

He looked though and found a well. It was high enough and not too far that they couldn't reach it easily. "Follow me!" Sam said and with that, he ran out. He let loose a hail of red bolts, aiming it at figures who were in the shadows ahead of them. He saw one go down. But the rest weren't falling. But they were being forced back by the fires that were consuming their huts. Reaching the well, he grabbed Shiny and threw them both down. They were scooting up against it when he saw shapes moving towards them from the rear. He stiffened but he saw two stormtroopers. Blue bolts passed close to them, but nothing scored.

The two troopers slid behind the well. It's square shape easily hid them all…as long as they kept close.

"What's the plan now?" FN-2415 asked, her voice strained. Another scream told them someone was hit on either side. They couldn't tell because all screams of pain were the same.

Shiny stuck his head to the side for a quick peek, pulling it back as a bolt chipped away the well just inches from his head.

"There is a small pillar that no one is covering," he said, pointing in the direction with his finger. "One of us should go there. We'll be able to flank them, keep them pinned while the rest of the squadrons clean up the rabble. I just hope Kylo Ren finds whomever he is looking for."

FN-2415 peeked over and said, "I'll get there! Cover me!"

She jumped to a crouch and her comrades all poked their heads over the edge of the well, firing at the shadows. But they had barely begun firing when Slick screamed "No!"

Sam turned and FN-2415 was holding her hands over a gaping hole in her breastplate. She was trembling, gagging sounds coming from her helmet. Sam reached out to grab her when another bolt took her in the head. He may have screamed her name as she stiffened, and fell backwards. All sound was lost, except for a massive buzzing in his head as he watched her fall to the ground.

Anger rose in him and gripping his blaster rifle, stood up and began moving around the well. He wasn't even aware of a decision to do so, but he advanced forward, firing at every shadow. His blaster rifle kept swinging, firing a couple of bursts everywhere he saw the villager. Each time his blaster moved and fired, another villager hit the ground. The anger and rage were all that pushed him forward. There may have been others in his squad moving forward, but all he wanted to do was kill _every single one of them_!

* * *

Kylo Ren moved among the burning huts. He watched the trooper in his rage at a fallen comrade go on a shooting spree. The other troopers watched in awe as this lone trooper defeated all the remaining armed villagers. He smiled at the pure, unadultered rage he felt that pushed the trooper forward.

But he moved his face away and focused on the hut. He could feel the powerful presence of the twins. They had surrounded the village too quickly for an escape. There had been an X-Wing, but that had been destroyed by the pair of TIEs that had strafed the village before the main attack began.

A blaster bolt came his direction, and with a flick of his hand, he diverted it, causing it to plow into the corpse of a dead villager. Terrorist was more like it. Anyone who supported the Jedi and worshipped the Force as good doers were no better than the fanatics that terrorists came from.

In front of the hut that he felt them in, he could hear them through the Force, their fear. Fear him they should. He'd show them the darkness that they so feared.

He reached out with both hands, cupping them before him. He could feel the very fibers of the hut as if his fingers were among them. He could feel every piece and strand that laced them together and slowly he twisted his hands so they were pointed away from each other, the back of his gloves touching each other. Than with a roar, he flung them apart.

The hut exploded, the curved walls flying in every direction. Several troopers were forced to scurry away to avoid it, and even a few of their prisoners also ran, not to escape but to avoid the walls. One was too slow and he was flattened to the ground. Kylo Ren could hear an arm pop out of its socket. He had no time to revel in the power he felt. A bolt flew at him and reaching out, he froze both the bolt and man.

The man was stuck. His body was vibrating from the paralyzing force that held him in its invisible grip. The trooper that had run through the camp shooting people, ran up with a few of his squad members in tow. He smashed the butt of his rifle into the man and he collapsed.

"Lor San Teka," Kylo Ren said, lowering his hand and turning to the old man. He sat with his legs crossed but looking with a calm defiance at the towering figure. "It's been a long time."

"Not long enough," he replied.

"Shall we be enemies, even after all this time?" Kylo asked. He walked towards the old man, stopping on the near side of the fire.

"It is you who have made us enemies," the old man countered. "I do not wish to be your enemy. But I am no friend to those who serve evil."

Kylo turned to look at the two children. It was sad, to think that these two weak younglings were among the inheritors of a great dynasty. One directly linked to the Force itself. They were not worthy of such an inheritance. But it was as it was.

"I am taking them," he announced. "It will go easier for you to let me take them without resisting."

"You have a family, one that knew you before you took on yourself the name Kylo Ren," Lor San Teka said, not rising to his feet. Stormtroopers were moving behind the two young padawans. Luckily for them, they did not resist. Probably smart enough to know that there was no chance of defeating them. "They would not wish you to do this thing. There is always a chance to return to them, to be forgiven."

" _My_ family betrayed me," Kylo Ren snarled, his voice synthesizer making it sound even harsher than it already was. " _I_ do not forgive _them."_

With a twist of his fingers, the bolt that had been meant for him, stuck in mid-air, turned and struck down the old man. Lor San Teka, friend to the Jedi, fell backwards, his chest smoking. The little girl, Jaina if he remembered her name, gasped and began crying. Her brother held her in his arms.

"No!" the man they had captured yelled in anger. "You butcher!"

"Take them to my shuttle," he ordered the troopers. "I want triple guards on them."

The twins were pulled to their feet and with hands gripping them in a vice like grip, marched them forward, blasters held against their heads. The man was dragged to his feet and pushed forward. Kylo held up his hand and the trooper paused with man, yanking him to a stop.

"Who are you?" Kylo Ren asked.

"Intergalactic Babysitter Services," the man said, a quirky smile on his face. "No one told me this was going to be such a painful job. Or that I needed a gun, but I did."

Kylo snorted and with a flick of his hand the prisoner was marched forward to follow the other. As he stood there, figures emerged from the darkness. It was Captain Phasma, followed by a dozen troopers. He could feel the delicious blood lust from her.

"Where have you been?" he asked, looking at her.

"Another village sent over people to assist this village," Phasma said with scorn. "We killed them all."

"Did you get a few hand-to-hand kills?" Kylo asked.

Phasma in response held out a long staff to him that was sharpened on both ends. He could see the blood that coated each end. Kylo Ren nodded and turned. He respected Phasma and her abilities. He could even consider her a friend. In another place, they may have been even closer. Yet…..he had someone else.

"And the prisoners?" Phasma asked. But her voice already was tinted as if this were an injoke between the two.

"You know what to do," Kylo Ren called back and walked away. There was no need to see what happened next.

 **Emperor's Trophy Room, Mount Tantis, Wayland**

Kira moved towards the back of the trophy room. Han wanted her to work her way from the back and forward. Ghent walked beside her, grumbling to himself. He hated this type of manual work. She really didn't care what he wanted. If he would only stop moaning like a hurt bantha.

'I should be combing the data banks up here!" he whined, "Not pushing a repulsor-sled with crates on it! Who would even want this junk anyways?"

Kira grunted as she pushed at his side. Despite the ease by which they could push the empty crate with the help of the repulsor-sled, it was still a good deal of weight. And their sled had a tendancy to pull to the right. So two people ensured that the sled would stay on task.

"I mean, why would anyone want these dusty old books?" Ghent griped. Several bookcases lined the room in a row. This was the back of the trophy room and there wasn't any further back that they could go. "It's not like anyone reads these anymore."

"Do you ever stop complaining?" Kira demanded. They pulled the life to a stop and with a push of a button, it settled with a thump.

"I'm just saying," Ghent responded, grabbing some of the books off the shelves. " _History of the Force_ by a Lord Hoth? _The Need for the Rule_ by Darth Bane? _A Study of Midichlorians and Life Eternal_ by Darth Plagueis the Wise? What a rubbish title. What the seven hells are midichlorians? Sound like a disorder caused by too much rancor sauce."

"If you are going to moan I'm going to another bookcase," Kira snapped. Walking away from Ghent, he called after her something. But she wasn't paying attention. No, she was thinking about her speeder. Must be on Takodana, just waiting for her! She still wasn't sure how she was going to…..

A gentle sound, like a whistle, or a low humming filled her ears. She stopped, frowning. She knew that music. The gentle tousling of her hair. It had…..it had happened when she was looking at the list of jobs. She looked around, and her face came to stair at a spot at the end of the rows of bookshelves.

She followed it, frowning as the music drew her. She wasn't sure what she was following, or where she was be taken. Yet she followed it anyways. She had heard that music only twice before. And the first time it was on Jakku. The night she had gotten on the _Millennium Falcon_ and had met Han Solo the Smuggler and become part of his crew.

Approaching the end of the bookcases, the music came to an end. She frowned and looked around her…..and in the very corner at the end of the bookcase, there was a door. She stepped up to it, and looked at it. A keypad stuck out, with the old blocky letters.

"Ghent?" she asked softly. Suddenly she remembered that he wasn't nearby, so turning around, she called out his name. "Ghent! Ghent!"

"What in the name of blue milk are you screaming about?" he shouted over the top of the bookcases.

"There another door over here! I think it leads to another chamber!" she yelled back.

"Fine!" the shout came back.

She stood at the end of the bookcases and after what seemed like a several long minutes, Ghent stepped up to her. She pointed towards it, and with a quick look, he sighed.

"I guess you want me to open it for you," he said. He looked at her and she just raised her eyebrow in a 'yeaaaah' look. He stepped up to it and grumbled, "I'm not coming with you down there. Not if I'm going to pick up all those nasty old books. Dusty books should _never_ touch my skin! You know what I just picked up? _Six Ways to Make Your Mom Forget You Existed_ by a sleemo of a person. Who would want to read such garbage?"

"More working, less talking," she ordered him.

"Hey, it's only your birthday!" he retorted. His fingers were typing out a song of their own. One of mechanical keys. "No one died and turned you into a right old bit-" the sound of the door sliding open cut off his last words. "There you go, your majesty!" he mock bowed to her. Kira walked up to him, and slapped him hard on the chest with the back of his hand.

"Go back to _Twi'lek Sex Slaves,"_ she said with a roll of her eyes.

"That's actually a pornographic holovid-how do you know about it?" Ghent asked suspiciously.

Kira reached her hand behind her head and waved "toodles" to him. And instantly forgot about the argument. She was on a staircase that led winding down in a circle to a lower level. These were made of stone, not steel. But soft white lights ignited with every step, leading her down.

She followed the stairs to the bottom, and a soft green glow lit the room. There were pedestals in a circle around the room, she walked up close to one. On it rested a small object. It was square, with what looked like glass windows. She reached out to touch it but it felt as if something touched her shoulder. She glanced sideways, and in the middle of the room, there was a smaller pedestal. It looked like an altar of some sort.

She approached it, and sitting on there was a box. In the soft light she couldn't tell what the box looked like, but there was a small latch. She seemed compelled to open it. Without thinking, she knelt, slid the latch to the side and popped the lid. Within was a long cylinder. It looked like a glow-rod. But, it was different.

" _Touch it."_

It was that voice again. The one she had heard on the Falcon. She looked around, and yet still saw no one. Her mind must have been playing tricks on her. Well, she was here to salvage, so she reached in and grabbed it.

A rushing sound of air filled the room and it vanished. Replaced by….what?

 _A young man sat across from her. He didn't seem to notice her, even though she was right before her. "Hello?" Kira asked, "Where am I?"_

 _The young man ignored her. He was kneeling down. His eyes closed and his hand was moving before him. This was really weird._

 _"Hey, I'm sorry," Kira said, "But I really need help. Where am I?"_

 _Yet, instead of hearing her, he continued to move his hands, as if he were conducting music in the air. She frowned and reached towards him…..and her hand went right through him. She brought it back, alarmed. This….this was a dream. It had to be! It had…._

 _Her eyes caught gears, parts, a switch floating between her and the young man. Wherever his hands moved, the items moved as well. In the center was a crystal, roughly hewn with a color of azure blue. The pieces began to come together, sliding the crystal into a chamber. Each piece attached itself, screwing itself into place, sliding in, as if by his mental command._

 _Then, the grips at the bottom came into place, and the young man reached out with a hand. The hand….it was cybernetic! Kira had never seen the old cybernetic hands, before the prosthetic ones were perfected. He placed his other hand on it, pulled it close and the pointing it to the ceiling, flipped the switch. A great blue beam of light shot forth._

 _"You're….a Jedi?" she asked, her eyes widening._

 _The scene shifted, and it was the same man. His hair was grown out and he wore gloves that she recognized as being both practical and usable for a mechanic. His hair was longer that she had remembered it before, but he stood towering over a woman. She was….incredibly beautiful._

 _"Look, Obi-wan always told me that my lightsaber is my life," he said, "And now, I'm giving it to you. You are my life."_

 _"Annie, I don't…." the woman paused as she felt the weight of the lightsaber in her hands. "Wow. It's heavier than I expected."_

 _Kira snorted, "That's what she said…." But even in mid-sentence, the scene shifted._

 _The young man, Annie, was running up a massive flight of stairs towards a massive temple that was lit up in a night sky. The scene shifted again, this time he was unconscious, a young Togruta woman pulling him out of a burning starfighter. She rolled the bodies onto a small shelf of a cliff as the burning fighter shot off into the distance and downwards, smoke trailing behind it. The scene again shifted to a massive room, and the man, now with a full mullet, summersaulted off a platform. An older man with grey hair and a full trimmed beard fought him with a red bladed lightsaber in a flurry of blows. Their blades locked._

 _"I sense great fear in you, Skywalker!" the older man grunted. "You have hate, you have anger, but you don't use them."_

 _The scene again shifted. It was the woman again, her hair done up in buns on either side of her head. She looked up at the man who held her in his arms. She looked both fearful and anxious. "Something wonderful has happened. Anakin, I'm pregnant." The shocked, almost horrified look on his face was….Kira couldn't understand that reaction. Why would he not be happy that his….wife, she guessed, was pregnant?_

 _Again the scene shifted, and she was now standing on a balcony of an apartment. It was nighttime and the couple were standing on the balcony. "It was only a dream…." The young man said, taking a few steps. Deeply siging he turned. "You die in childbirth."_

 _The young woman clutched her massive belly. Mother of Moons, Kira thought, she's about to explode! "And the baby?"_

 _"I don't know." He admitted._

 _Yet another scene shift. The young man, Anakin was his name, was sitting in a darkened room. Sitting next to him was a shadowy figure. She couldn't make him out, but the man was talking. "He could even keep the ones he cared about….from dying."_

 _Anakin turned to the figure, frowning. "He could keep people from dying?"_

 _Then from the depths of the shadowy figure rumbled out a response. "The Dark Side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural."_

 _The scene shifts again, and a man, dark stood on a windowsill. A purple lightsaber was extended and the shadowy figure was collapsed on the ground. She saw Anakin looking at the man as if pleading._

 _"You can't! He must stand trial!"_

 _"He has control of the Senate and the Court! He's too dangerous to be left alive." He raised his blade to strike down at the shadowy figure but Anakin lashes out, cutting off the hand of the man. And lightning roared._

 _Another shift, and Anakin stood infront of a bunch of children. "Master Skywalker, there are too many of them, what are we to do?" The lightsaber extended in a roar._

 _Another shift. A Nemodian, tall and grey was cowering before Anakin. Kira could feel the hatred and rage washing from the man. "The war is over! Lord Sidious, he promised us peace, we only want-" his plea ended in a scream as he slashed upwards._

 _The scene shifted again. Now….Anakin was laying on the sand of a burning planet. A river of fire flowed behind him. Where….where was his legs?_

 _"You were my brother Anakin! I loved you." A Jedi was bending over and grabbed the lightsaber. Even as he stood, she heard Anakin bellowing, "I HATE YOU!" The Jedi kept straightening, and suddenly they were in a house, colors of bleached stone. The Jedi, was he the same man? He was old, and he walked up to a young boy, long hair. Looked around the same age as Kira was._

 _"Your father wanted you to have this, when you were old enough."_

 _"What is it?" the boy asked, taking the lightsaber from the old Jedi._

 _"You're father's lightsaber. This is the weapon, of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy or random as a blaster. It's an elegant weapon, of a more civilized age."_

 _"How did my father die?"_

 _"A young Jedi named Darth Vader, who was a pupil of mine before he turned to evil, helped the Empire and hunt down the Jedi. He betrayed and murdered your father."_

 _Kira didn't remember that. But if this was the child of Anakin Skywalker, than the wife didn't die! But was this a result of what he had done? Had this "Dark Side" given him the ability to save the woman? Or, had she always been okay, and she had fled when she had seen his wrath?_

 _The scene shifted, and she was standing on a catwalk. Wind howled around her. The boy was clashing with a figure, dark and menacing. The boy retreated and then at the last moment, the dark figure twisted the blade up and slashed his arm off. The lightsaber began to fall and Kira found herself also begin to fall. Even as she fell, she felt like she was floating on air._

 _"Obi-wan never told you what happened to your father."_

 _"He told me enough! He told me you killed him."_

 _"No, I am your father!"_

 _Wait….the dark figure was Anakin? Obi-wan, whoever he was, had lied to Luke? Was he the old man? Had to be. Yet even as she fell, she heard the boy screaming in grief and anguish at the revelation. And as she fell the immeasurably long distance, the lightsaber was clutched to the severed hand. Then…..it was in the hands of several Black Armored men who marched up. One of them held the hand and saber in it._

 _They were in the room. This room! She recognized the pedestals that swept around in a circle. A dark figure stood in the corner, and two red guards flanked him. The men held out the lightsaber hilt first to him. The dark figure did not move, but now she saw red eyes blazing in the darkness._

 _"Skywalker's lightsaber, sire," the soldier said._

 _"Gooood. Gooood!" the man said and a clawed hand extended and took it. He pulled the saber close and suddenly his face was unveiled. A harsh, scarred face. The eyes were filled with lust, rage and malice. And he began to cackle, and his laugh filled her mind with its dark hues._

And she was thrown back, the vision ended. She held the lightsaber tightly. Even as she stared at it, her eyes wide, she heard a voice. That voice again. The voice that had spoken to her only a few times. A voice that she now knew who it belonged to. Although she wasn't sure how.

" _You have seen a portion of my story,_ " Anakin Skywalker said to her. " _Take my lightsaber and bring balance back to the galaxy. It is yours."_

Having seen what she had seen, it had all gone by so fast. But, she had seen the power and the history of the lightsaber. Even if she _wanted_ to get rid of it, she couldn't Not without feeling guilty. She stuck it in her satchel and stand up, her hand bumped one of the devices that was on the pedestal. It suddenly flashed red and begun to float and her eyes grew wide as an angry and harsh voice demanded.

" _Who disturbs my slumber?_ "


	6. Kira's Reward and Kylo's Instructions

**Chapter 5: Kira's Reward and Kylo's Instructions**

 ** _Millennium Falcon_** **, in hyperspace**

Kira sat in her small quarters. She sat at one corner, the satchel in the other. In it was that….that, _lightsaber._ Not only that, she had stuffed it full of the objects that had rested on the pedestal. She hadn't given them over to Han. She knew she _should_ have given them to him.

She had snuck them on the Falcon, and tossed them into the corner. She didn't know what the cubes, triangles and other shaped objects were. But when she had touched that one, it had started to speak to her. Somehow she had been able to shut it off, but she felt confused on what she was to do.

And there was that lightsaber.

That lightsaber that had shown Kira….what? A vision? A dream? A hallucination?

As soon as they had left Wayland, she had retreated to her quarters and for the past few hours she had done nothing but either stare at the bulging satchel uncertainly, or she had paced the room. She didn't have a ton of space, but there was enough to pace.

"What am I to do?" she asked, leaning forward and gripping the sides of her head.

There was a ding from her door and she looked up. "Yeah?" she asked, and she heard the wookie calling to her. She stood up, wincing from having sat in one position for so long. She came to the door, and with a push of a button, it slid open. The wookie toward over her. "What is it?"

Chewbacca made a few snuffling sounds and with a wave of his hairy hand, beckoned her to follow him. Stepping into the corridor, she followed Chewie out into main lounge area. Ghent was playing holographic sabacc with a holographic player. He didn't look up at her, focused entirely on his hand. He led her to a room.

Not just any room. Han Solo's room! Kira looked in surprise as the door was already open and Han could be seen, sitting at a table. She didn't often enter his room, considering it a breach of privacy. She had never lost that desire for privacy that she had wanted so badly on Jakku.

"Come in, Kira," he said, waving her in.

He was looking at a picture that was on his desk. A holographic image of Han as a young man, his wife Leia, and his two children, Ben and…..what was his name? Anakin, that's right. Anakin Solo. They looked so happy in the picture, young Anakin wailing as Ben poked him, Leia trying desperately to keep them sat still and Han looking like he was out of his depth. Those were memories that she really didn't have.

He finally turned to face her and with a serious look, rested on arm on top of the desk. He looked at her long and hard.

"Why did you do it?" he asked at long last.

She gulped nervously. "Did what?" she asked.

"Don't play dumb with me, Kira," he finally said, crossing his arms. "You know _exactly_ what you did."

She tried not to crack. She sat there, trying to look innocent. But those clever eyes that always seemed to know more than you thought, bore into her. She began to tremble as he continued to stare at her. No, no, she shouldn't!

"I'm sorry," she said, putting her face in her hands. "I know I should have given them to you as well. I shouldn't have kept them. But they were really something….well unique, and there was also…."

"No, Kira," Han said, cutting into her apology, "I was talking about the….wait, what did you mean? What did you take?"

"What?" she asked, looking up from her hands. His face looked confused. Almost as much as she felt. "You aren't talking about….."

"About what?" he asked, his eyes hardening. "Did you take something from Wayland and not tell me about it?"

She felt all the color drain from her face. He hadn't been talking about that? Then what was he talking about?

"What were you talking about?" she asked.

"No, girl," he shook his head and crossed his arms. "You took stuff from the operation without handing it in. Whatever it was you took, could be worth a lot. You know what that means? That you stole from the company. Worse then that, you stole from your friends. I consider every person who works here as my friend.

"Everyone that works for me depends on the money that is to be made from these jobs. Every single person needs the money that the artifacts and equipment garnished from each salvage job. Balak-Tik? He has to pay money to his three ex-wives and child suppot on a dozen kids. Little Sammie in Tasu-Leech's crew? He is trying to get into a university so he can become a doctor. You stealing stuff and hoarding it takes away from other people. You grab that stuff and bring it here right now."

Kira felt terrible as she stood up and made the long trek back to her quarters. She hadn't _meant_ to steal from anyone. It had felt right, taking these cubes and well….the lightsaber _had_ been given to her. Or had it? As she grabbed the satchel and held it against her side and walked back, she had to wonder if anything she had seen was actually true. It was very possible she had made it all up.

She held her head down as she re-entered the room and held out the satchel. She glanced up and Han pointed to a chair. She slowly sank into it and leaned over, staring at her legs. She felt very terrible as she heard the man open up the satchel and begin to pull stuff out.

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk. Each item was placed on the table and she looked up chastened at the cubes, octagons and triangle shaped devices as they were lined up on the table. She felt he disapproval rising in Han. She glanced back down staring at her nails, wishing he would say something.

"What the….." Han said, his voice a harsh whisper. "What is this?"

She looked up and he was holding the lightsaber in his hand. A look of shocked recognition was on his face and letting go of the satchel, slowly spun it in his hands, looking it over. He ran over it with his hands, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"It can't be," he whispered, and he looked up at her. "Where did you get this? I want the full story, Kira Rey."

With shaky breath she told him of discovering the secret door. Ghent helping open it. Going down into the secret chamber. Finding the box and the lightsaber within. She held no detail back, adding in everything she could remember about the vision. She finally said that the voice of the owner, Anakin Skywalker, had given it to her. Han did not interrupt her as she told the story, but listened intently.

"You said there was a voice that told you to grab it and keep it," he finally said. "Did they also ask you to take these holocrons?"

"Holocrons?" she asked, frowning. "What are holocrons?"

"These," Han said, pointing to the devices. "They are used by the Jedi and the Sith to record memories and teachings. Or so that's my understanding. Honestly, I never understood a lot about the Force."

He fell silent for a second thinking. She hadn't answered his question, but he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. She looked at how he held the lightsaber handle. As if it was too precious to hold tightly or put down. As if it were something that had been long missed.

"Do you remember what you told me the night that you first appeared on our ship as a little stow-away?" he finally asked, looking at her.

"I remember a lot of blubbering," she said with a soft smile at the memory. "I think I called Chewbacca an Ewok."

Han threw back his head and laughed. "Oh yeah," he chuckled, wiping his lips as saliva had collected on the lips. "I forgot about that. No, you said something like 'A voice told me to come on your ship'. I never believed it, thinking that you would say anything to talk me into keeping you onboard." He smiled ruefully. "I'm glad I did. But, it wasn't until a few days back that I begin to wonder. Now, I know for certain."

"What?" Kira asked, leaning forward. "Know what?"

Han looked down at the lightsaber and slowly sat it on his lap, covering it with one hand. The other he rested along the table and stared thoughtfully at Kira.

"I've never talked to you about the Force, have I?" he finally said. "No. I've given you the facts of life…..which we _do_ need to talk about. I saw those vids you are hiding in your room." Kira wanted to interrupt him but didn't have a chance. "I never believed in anything beyond making the quick credit, ya'know? The Force, an all-powerful cosmic energy that binds good and evil together. The Jedi, the dark side….it was all a bunch of hocus pocus non-sense, ya know."

He paused, as he sat there. A small smile crept across his lips as he remembered those days, so long ago. A time, far before Kira had even been a thought in even her grandparents minds.

"Then, one day, in deep debt to Jabba the Hutt, I'm sitting in the cantina in Mos Eisley Spaceport. Trying to think of how I'm going to pay the debt back and get the bounty off my head. And that was when it happened. An old man and a kid, no older than you came sitting down at my table. They wanted to go to Alderaan. Didn't understand why anyone would want to go there. Besides the women. They've got big minds, beautiful eyes and big massive, can't fit in your hands….."

He stopped what he was saying, his hands motioning back and forth towards his chest in a suggestive manner. He cleared his throat and dropping one hand back on the lightsaber, waved the other one in front of Kira.

"Never mind that," he told her. "The price was right and I needed the funds. It was going to be a quick job. The old man was crazy, that was for sure. But…..I have seen a lot of stuff since I brought old Ben Kenobi and Luke onto my ship, which he called a piece of junk."

"Luke?" she asked, her eyes growing wide. "Luke Skywalker? So you did know him?"

"You've been on here for six years and you haven't figured that out yet?" Han shook his head.

"I always kinda thought you were bluffing," Kira admitted.

"I've told a few tall tales in my day to be sure, but with the Jedi and Luke?" he took a deep breath. "I've never said this before but…..it's true. All of it. The Jedi, the Sith. The war between the light and dark. It's all true."

They fell into a silence that enveloped the entire room. Kira sat back in her chair, thinking about what she had heard. How the Jedi could have been real and the Force as well! Sure, she had been shown that vision, but how was she to know what she saw really came from the Force or even if it had any connections to it?

"Well, sith spit," Han said, and she looked up at him. "Now this really makes it awkward. I really had brought you in to ask you something but now this has made it seem insignificant."

"What were you wanting to ask me?" she asked.

"Well, today is still your birthday," he said, looking a little uncomfortable as he spoke. "You see, on Corellia, my homeworld, you don't become an adult until you are 21. That's the legal drinking and voting in local politics age. Everything under 21 is still basically a minor."

"Odd," she folded her arms and looked at him, wondering where this is going.

"Look, you've been on this ship for six years and you've proven you love the _Falcon_ just as much as I do," he said, pushing himself up and pacing back and forth infront of her. There wasn't a whole lot of room to pace, but he made the rounds all the same. "Chewie likes you, he's even gotten over you calling him an ewok. You are the closest thing I've ever had a daughter, and well, you have always been such a hard worker. Am I making any sense, Kira?"

"Not really," she shook her head.

Han put his fingers on either side of his nose between his eyes as if he were trying his best to put into words what he was trying to say.

"Dammit!" he growled, "Look, Kira, I want you to be family. I want to adopt you."

Kira's eyes shot wide and her mouth dropped open in surprise. She was stunned by what he was saying. She had always dreamed of one day returning to Jakku and finding her parents in Niima Outpost. She knew they had abandoned her, deadbeats, but she had always wanted to be a part of a family again.

"On Corellia you're still adoptable until the age of 21 and while I know you aren't Corellian," Han said, a panicked look on his own face. "Look, you don't have to make up your mind now, we can wait until we get back to Corellia. I need to spend a few weeks on the planet to upkeep the Solo farmstead. But….dammit Kira, you're like a daughter to me and I want you to be part of my family! But you can say no if you want….."

"Yes!" Kira said, cutting into his ramblings. "I want to be your daughter. Are you….." she hesitated, not sure if she was being too optimistic. "Are you sure Leia is fine with it?"

"She's met you a few times and she likes you," Han replied, "She's totally on board with you joining the family."

"Yes, I want to be your daughter," Kira said, then leaning over broke into tears and sobs of joy.

 ** _The Finalizer,_** **Starkiller System**

Kylo Ren sat in the meditation chamber. His legs were crossed, his arms resting on his legs, the hands cupping his knees. His eyes were closed, the helmet placed firmly around his head, shrouding in the mystery that he found so appealing. He had found plans for Vader's meditation chamber and had created a sphere similar to it, but unlike his grandfather's, heated coals were beneath him, rising through the vents in the floor to fill the chamber with steam.

He had felt it. A flash like lightning through the Force. He had been on Jakku, boarding his shuttle when he had felt the shift. Like an awakening of the Force within a potentially powerful Force user. He had thought Snoke would contact him for certain to discuss this awakening. Yet he hadn't, so Kylo stretched out with his feelings.

He allowed his meditation state to roam the corners of the universe. Yet whatever it was, it was elusive, moving. He couldn't discover its location. If only he was his grandfather, he'd be able to locate it with ease! Darth Vader had been a power unlike any that had come before him. And he was heir to the Force that had created Anakin Skywalker, not the two little brats that were his cousins.

He felt the doors to his meditation chamber open and a man step through. He pulled himself back within himself, closing himself off from the meditation state he had been in. Opening his eyes, he looked through the visor. It told him a Sergeant stood before him. It listed all his relevant information and he cleared his throat.

"Are they ready?" he asked, his voice seeming even more menacing in the reddish glow of the room's steam.

"Yes, my lord," the Sergeant said. "They are waiting in your dining room."

"And the 'babysitter'?" he asked.

"We have been unable to discover anything on him from the records we've sliced of the New Republic," the sergeant reported. Kylo could see sweat beginning to glisten on his forehead from the humidity.

"He must be Black Ops," Kylo murmured. He knew the reputation of New Republic Black Ops soldiers. They were tough warriors, and they would not be easy to crack.

"Perhaps, my lord," the officer said. "We have him in intergotation room seventeen."

"Excellent," the masked man said. Slowly he rose, brushing back the black cape that had bunched around him as he had sat. "We will deal with the Jedi Padawans first and then move onto the Babysitter. Depending how it goes, of course."

His dining room wasn't the most extravagant affair, a table that could sit four with enough chair for four people. Soft lights glowed in it, and when he arrived, he found two squadrons of soldiers fit tightly in the room. With a wave of his hand, all of the troopers shuffled out, forming a perimeter around the door as it closed behind him.

He turned to the two younglings. Fifteen years old, they had been cleaned up, most likely against their will. The boy looked exactly like his father when he had been that age, a skinny boy with yellowish hair. The girl looked like a female version of her brother, but she sported striking copper hair, like her mother had.

"Jacen and Jaina," he addressed them. He grabbed a chair and pulling it back, sat down. "It has been too long, cousins."

"Not long enough," Jacen said, his voice trembling but trying to put on a brave face. Jaina said nothing, her eyes cast down. "We knew you were coming. Grandfather told us you were."

"Grandfather?" Kylo Ren asked, his voice suspicious. "If Grandfather had told you to flee, you would have fled long before I got there. But I am not here to trade insults. You both must be hungry!"

Jaina glance dup at the mention of that. Jacen eyed his cousin suspiciously but even as he tried to bore into Kylo's mask with his eyes, the doors to the galley opened and out rolled a droid on two legs with four wheels attached to the bottom. It had three trays on it's two hands and balanced on it's head. It laid a tray, covered with a silver lid before Kylo Ren, then placed one before each of the twins. Then, as quickly as it had rolled in, it was out, pulling the lids off as it went out.

"I hope you like it," Kylo said. "I don't know if you still like it, but I remember you two being utterly enthralled with rancor pie with Umbaran roots."

Jacen and Jaina eyed the food suspiciously and Jaina turned to her twin brother. It was obvious that out of the two, Jacen was the leader. Jaina looked over at Kylo and he felt her trying to probe his mind. None of that, he thought to himself and her head snapped back as if he had backhanded her.

"Now now," he tisked, "Didn't your father or Lor San Teka teach you it's rude to read someone's mind without permission?"

He raised one hand and with the Force, he gripped the three plates and raised them. Then with the other hand he began to spin them in the air, using the Force to also hold the food in place as he spun the plates around in a continuing circle. At times he had the plates jump over each other and at times he reversed the direction. He kept this up for a full minute before gently setting the trays down before each person. They were effectively mixed up and with his hands, he placed them on either side of his helmet.

The air jettisoned out as the vocalizer extended forward and slid up over the visor. The back of the helmet pulled back from the mask, and grabbing it, he lifted it and set it to the side. It thudded onto the top of a shelf next to the table. Lifting a two-prong fork, he stuck it in a small cut of an Umbaran root and lifted it to his mouth. He took a bite from it and let them see him taking his time chewing and swallowing it.

When it was clear he didn't fall over from being poisoned, Jacen nodded his head to Jaina and they began to eat. Kylo watched his cousins eat, refusing to look up at him. It had been a long time since he had shared a meal with anyone, but it wasn't curiosity that led him to staring at them.

"I apologize we could not meet again in better circumstances," he finally said. His voice was not as menacing as it was with the helmet on, and he was self-conscious of the long face he had and the frekcles and moles that dotted his face. "However, you made it a little hard with hiding like you did. Almost as if you didn't want to be found by your own family."

"It's not our fault that you are Sith," Jacen said, not looking up as he cut into more of his rancor pie.

"That's where you are wrong," Kylo assured him. "I'm not a SIth. The Sith are a thing of the past. We know now that Palpatine and the Rule of Two he healed so dear were mockeries of the true Sith ideals, but I am no Sith."

"You are a 'Jedi Killer'," Jaina finally said, the first thing she had said since they had been captured. "SIth kill Jedi. Therefore, you are Sith."

"A rather simplistic view but not inaccurate," he admitted. "But I do not wish to discuss what I am. No, instead, I'm much more interested in why you were on Jakku. Why were you there? Who took you to that desert world?"

"Even if we knew we wouldn't tell you," Jacen said defiantly.

"Perhaps your father did, or your mother, either would do so. Especially Luke Skywalker. He grew up on a desert world," but even as Kylo spoke, he noticed the lack of reaction from what he was saying. Realization dawned on him. "Your parents _didn't_ drop you off. Who was it then? General Solo? Perhaps a member of the Council? There is still four left unaccounted for, not including Luke Skywalker….no. It was no Jedi that dropped you off there. It was…..Han Solo?"

The smallest reaction told him all he needed to know. Why would Han Solo take them to Jakku? Did he choose the place or was it chosen beforehand? Why would anyone want to go to Jakku anyways? It was hot and barren and…..a place of immense power in the Light Side!

"Your father told Han Solo to take you to Jakku because it was a focal point of the Light Side, similar to Dagobah, is that it?" he asked eagerly. Yet they said nothing, instead giving him blank looks if they looked up from their food. "Well, it doesn't really matter. What did you do on that dustball anyways?"

"We did our best to keep our skills sharp," Jaina said, "But there wasn't much more we could learn."

"Just because we are of the mighty Skywalker bloodline doesn't mean we are capable of flash-learning new skills," Kylo nodded his head in understanding. "I know very well…."

"I know you're a monster," Jacen said, his eyes hardening is he looked at Kylo Ren.

"Monster am I?" Kylo smiled a little. "If I am a monster it's because your father and your uncle and aunt made me so."

"I know all about Supreme Leader Snoke and what he wants!" Jacen shook his head. "He will use you like a sock and when he's done, he will drain your very essence to give himself more strength. He gains strength by sucking out the midich-"

"Don't speak to me as if you know the Supreme Leader," Kylo cut him off. "The Supreme Leader is wise. Wiser than anyone you have ever known."

"He was wise enough to know you would be easy to seduce," Jacen agreed with a fierce nod. Kylo wasn't sure where this boy was getting such ferocious strength. Must be the Vader in him. "Especially after you killed Anakin!"

"Shut up!" Kylo roared and jumping to his feet, held his hand out in a claw. Jacen began clutching at his throat, gagging as he began to rise. "That was an accident! I did not kill Anakin! I told Han Solo and Princess Leia many, many times but they wouldn't believe me. Now you speak these…. _these lies_?"

"Let him go!" Jaina screamed and reaching out with her hand, the trays, forks and knives began shooting across the room towards him.

Holding up his own hand, the dishes and food stopped in mind air. They pushed against eachother, him feeling the strength of her Force Push against his own. Like two negatives of a magnet struggling against each other. Her strength would falter and the suspended items would float to her, than a redoubled effort would keep it in place.

"You are pathetic and weak," Kylo snarled and threw the choking Jacen into his twin. They both crashed into the floor as the door slid open. Troops poured into the room and Kylo motioned them to take the twins. "I gave you the chance to cooperate willingly, but your lies and refusal to help will turn this much more brutal! Put them in adjoining cells so they'll be able to hear each other scream."

"Yes, Lord Ren," one of the troopers replied and they dragged the twins to their feet.

"Oh, and if any of you touch my cousins in a sexual manner, I'll personally remove your heads!" he growled as they shuffled out of the door, barrels pressed against the brats heads. Anger surged through him and he clenched his fist, slowly flexing it open and closed, although the fury he felt made his hands tremble.

A beep signaled that General Hux was calling him. Taking a few deep breaths, he lifted the helmet and slid it back onto his head. Stepping up to the commchannel, he pressed a button.

"Yes?" he asked, the comfort of the vocalizer a welcome sound.

"Supreme Leader Snoke demands us to attend a holocomm conference," the General said, sneering at him. "We'll be taking it in the conference room."

"Fine," he grunted. "I'm on my way."

* * *

"About time you got here Ren," Hux said, sitting in one of a dozen seats surrounding a large onyx black table. It was shiny enough that the reflective surface showed perfectly the overhead illumination with no distortion. "The Supreme Leader does not like to be kept waiting."

Around the table was the holographic forms of other Generals and Admirals. Only two spots were empty. His own seat next to General Hux, and the seat to the right hand of the head of the table. Yet it was the head of the table that drew his attention and it was to this that he bowed himself.

The head of the table sat a man, long, tall and stringy. His form was bent and massive scars covered his bald head. Yet he towered over everyone in the room, his hologram dwarfing the others by twice the size and height. The hologram did not show the color of his robes, but they were long and flowing. His eyes blazed with intensity that the holographic technology could not hide in the slightest.

"Kylo Ren, my personal Darth Vader and leader of the Knights of Ren," Snoke's voice carried across the room with a great gravelly voice. It was old, and ancient. "Take your seat."

"By your command, my lord," he replied and walked around the table to Hux's side. The others holographic images showed faces that showed great respect for the Jedi Killer, or disdain for the mystic that dare have the Supreme Leader's ear.

He used the Force to pull the chair back and sat himself, using Force Pull to seat himself. He glanced sideways at Hux. The man didn't even have the common decency of telling him that the Supreme Leader was already waiting for him! He only wish he could teach this upstart a lesson.

"Now that we are finally all here," supreme Leader Snoke said, resting his hands on the table before him. "Let us get started. General Hux, is the Galaxy Gun ready?"

Hux, looking pleased with being the one to open the meeting, sat even taller than he had beforehand. "The Gun is ready!" he announced proudly. "We have been able to run simulations and tests on deserted systems and it works as effectively as when I first promoted the project ten years ago. As soon as you are ready, Supreme Leader, we can begin annihilating the New Republic fleet."

"What is the recharge rate on the weapon?" one of the Admirals, Ren forgot his name, asked. "Are we talking about twenty-four hours to recharge the gun?"

"Nothing that slow," Hux said, turning his eyes to the man. "On that count we are much faster than I originally estimated. We can fire once every two hours."

The entire room lit up with mutterings and exclamations. Kylo could feel the swell of pride from the man to his side. Mother of Moons, how he'd like to stick his lightsaber up his anus. But he couldn't help admitting the man was something of a visionary. A few years older than Kylo, Hux's father had been the Supreme General of the Contingency's forces as they rallied in the Unknown Regions, fleeing from the crumbling Empire as part of Palpatine's grand back-up strategy. That was before the Supreme Leader had found the Imperial remnant and molded them into what they were today.

Snoke raised his hand and the entire room fell silent. His very presence demanded order and respect and he would not allow more discussion than he allowed.

"Very good, General," Snoke said and he turned his scared head towards another member of the conference. "General Blitzer Harrsk, have your spies been able to locate all the military targets?"

"Everything except the blacklisted sites of the three divisions," the older man said. He was one of the Contingency, chosen for his brute efficiency. "My spies have located the industrial strong-points in the Republic, their military academies, their political universities and more. As soon as we hit R-Day, we will easily be able to hit all of them, as long as we have the forces available, Supreme Leader."

"The Grand Admiral has made efficient plans and we will be able to rout the New Republic within a few weeks' time, even if we decided not to use the Galaxy Gun," Snoke informed them.

"And may I ask where the Grand Admiral sir?" Hux asked. "I would assume _she_ would want to be in on this meeting."

"She is finalizing details with the Grand Admiral of the Imperial Military for their participation," Snoke informed them.

Kylo Ren could see the disdain that Hux had. Not just for the Galactic Empire, who were no longer worthy of that title. No, Hux also had disdain for a woman being the Grand Admiral. There was only one Grand Admiral in the First Order, and she had complete control over the entire military power of the Order. He felt that no woman should have military authority and it was mainly due to Kylo Ren's patronage that kept Captain Phasma in charge of Chrome Dome Division.

"Lord Ren, there was a rumor that stated that you had captured the Skywalker Twins," another officer, an Admiral named Treuten Teradoc.

"Are there no secrets in the First Order?" Kylo asked.

"So it is true!" Admiral Teradoc lifted his hands and gave a wide cruel smile.

Kylo Ren didn't want to talk about it in this meeting, but he could feel the eyes of Snoke bearing down on him. He looked to the Supreme Leader and the man held out his larger than life hands in his direction.

"Tell us what you have learned from them, Ren," Snoke said.

"I captured them on Jakku," Kylo said and he could see General Harrsk blanch slightly at the name. "They were strengthening what skills they had and the girl is powerful. Not as powerful as I was, and I proved that during our first session. I don't know why they were on Jakku but it was actually Han Solo the Smuggler who placed them on Jakku, not their parents. They also claim to know the origins of the Supreme Leader and his goals."

"Ha!" Hux balked aloud. "No one can understand the Supreme Leader. He is wise."

The officers around the table nodded their heads in agreement. Yet Kylo Ren could feel that Snoke was contemplative.

"Han Solo…." He said, as if mulling the words in his head. "We will indeed strike out with Operation Resurrection of R-Day, on the 30th anniversary of Palpatine's death. However…..we will not launch the campaign if Han Solo is still alive. He is a harbinger of doom. It was he that brought Skywalker from the dirty world he grew up on! Had he not, the Death Star never would have been destroyed, and Vader would not have fallen to him along with the Emperor!"

His words boomed across the hall and they turned to face him. His wroth was great and they remained silent.

"Kylo Ren, this task is for you," Snoke said, pointing a finger in his direction. "You are to hunt him down and kill him. General Hux will have oversight over this, and he will report to me once the kill has been confirmed. If you fail to do this, then the war will not begin, and you will be answerable to the entire military as to why you are denying them their war. Do you understand?"

Kylo Ren sat there. This was…..he tried not to let his sudden discomfort show. He was being asked to kill….his own father. He nodded once though, feeling all the eyes on him. None of these generals and admirals knew the truth of whom he was. They would not understand if he was to refuse.

"As you command, Supreme Leader," he said aloud.

The meeting lasted for another half hour, other admirals and generals stating reports of readiness, battle-plans to the Supreme Leader. Yet Kylo Ren sat there, feeling the gloating of the of Hux as he had just been told by the Supreme Leader that he would be watching over Ren's mission.

Yet he felt turmoil inside of himself. He didn't want to kill Han Solo. His father may not have meant anything to him, but he was still his father. He was being asked a more serious task than he had ever been asked. A trial that was greater than any he would have to face. To kill, to drive his crimson blade into Han's chest, it was…..a hard thing to do.

"Very well," Snoke said at the end of the meeting. "We will adjourn. As soon as Kylo Ren's mission is complete, General Hux will send a general message to all that it is done. The Grand Admiral will then issue the execution order. Now go and prepare yourselves for the great pledge that was made to Emperor Palpatine."

The other men and women saluted him as they faded out, their holocommunicators ending their call. Kylo Ren put his hands on the table and prepared to stand.

"Not you Ren, I wish to speak with alone," Snoke told him. Kylo Ren settled himself back in his seat and General Hux stood. He didn't have to see it to know the scowl on the red-head's face. He absolutely detested the personal chats that Kylo Ren would have with their glorious leader.

They waited until Hux had completely left the conference room before either spoke. Kylo Ren felt that he was going to be chastised for the confusion within him.

"There has been an awakening, have you felt it?" Snoke asked.

Kylo Ren felt relief seeping through him. So, it wasn't that after all. He was also relieved to feel the sudden awakening he had felt was not just him alone.

"Yes," he affirmed. "I have been reaching out with the Force and trying to find it. It is on the move. It is hard to pin down."

"She touched a lightsaber," Snoke said at last.

" _She_?"

"I do not know who she is, only that it was a woman who touched a lightsaber," Snoke said. "Not just any lightsaber. The lightsaber of Anakin Skywalker."

Kylo felt his fist clench and the leather creak from the strength. Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber was found? It had been recovered from Bespin? That lightsaber belonged to him!

"That's one reason why I need you to kill Han Solo," Snoke said, leaning forward. "She is with him. I need you to kill her before she becomes a threat."

"Surely she cannot become a threat!" Kylo protested.

"I have a feeling that she may indeed one day bring the Force to balance in a way that would shake the very foundation of our understanding of it if she is not stopped before she learns how to use the Force," he said. "The Empire was brought down not only by those who know the Force, but by sentimentality. I watched it from afar, the fall of the Republic, the rise of the Empire and it's fall. It was sentiment that killed it, when the father refused to kill the son when he had the chance. And we cannot allow sentimentality to allow us to fall."

Kylo understood what was being said and nodded his head in understanding.

"Once you kill Han Solo and the girl," Snoke continued, "You need to go to Mustafar."

Vader's Castle! "What for?" he asked.

"I have contacted the One Sith and they are sending a representative there," Snoke explained. "She will complete your training."

Kylo Ren snorted. "I don't need further training," he shook his head defiantly. "I have already proven myself against Jedi of all standing…."

"Yet you have never faced against Luke Skywalker," Snoke cut him off. "If your training is not complete, he could destroy you if you ever face him. Which one day you shall."

"He will not," Kylo Ren proclaimed. "I am superior to him. That's why he has fled."

"We shall see," Snoke's hologram said, vanishing. "We shall see."Hux ha


	7. Power Bought by Pain

**Chapter 6: Power Bought by Pain**

 ** _Finalizer_** **, Starkiller System**

Sam stood next to his friends and comrades. The bodies of the ten dead troopers were laid side-by-side. Their shattered armor was out of place in the uniformed, monotone crematory. Two Stormtrooper divisions were of the ship, and the commanders of each had their own way of honoring the dead.

For Chrome Dome, it was burning the bodies of the fallen. He stared down at the lifeless form of FN-2185, the burn marks of her armor searing into his memory. Silent tears flowed down his cheeks, hidden by his helmet.

"To be a warrior is to be more," Captain Phasma said. She stood n the opposite side of the row of dead bodies. Her blaster was holstered, but her long spear stood next to her, gripped in her chrome gloves. "That is what my people say. You are more than a man or woman. You are more because you are expected to perform more, do more and give more. These ten have given more than any of us here."

She paused, allowing for dramatic effect.

"Selected or Volunteers, we have all made the pledge to do more," Phasma continued. "We have been given the task to do more than any military force this galaxy has ever seen. We are to win an Empire. An Empire not only for ourselves, but our brothers and sister in the Galactic Empire that live in fear of an unjust New Republic.

"That's what these ten gave their lives for. Their sacrifice brought us that much closer to victory. In my culture, we burn the dead with their weapons and armor, so they have them on hand when they do battle in the After Worlds. Where demons always wait to prey on those who can't fight. May their sacrifice and their eternal battles give us the drive we need to do what needs to be done."

In the twelve years he had been a stormtrooper, this was the first time had had ever lost someone. Sam watched as with a nod of the Captain's head, slots opened up beneath the bodies, roaring fires crackling underneath. The corpses, armor and weapons vanished into the opened gullets of the crematory pits, and small explosions sounded from within as energy cells for their rifles exploded.

The slots closed, and he watched as the visual readout on his HUD registered the lack of heat where there had once been fire. His comrade was gone, and he felt oddly empty. No swell of pride at her loss. Empty as if a hole existed where there was none.

"Dismissed," Captain Phasma ordered and the troopers began to move around him.

He didn't feel like moving, despite the given order. She was gone, and he didn't even know her name. He felt a hand comfortingly gripping his shoulder. He heard Shiny talking to him.

"Come on, mate," his comrade and friend said. "Let's put on a holovid program and forget about this for a while."

Nothing would make him forget, he was sure of that. "Alright," he nodded his head.

He turned to leave and a shadow fell across him. They turned and came to stiff attention.

"FN-2187," Phasma said, standing over him. "You have been ordered by Kylo Ren to guard the 'Babysitter' in interrogation room 17 effectively immediatly."

"Yes Captain," Sam said and Phasma stepped away,

* * *

"What were you doing in the company of the Jedi brats?"

"Hey, all I was told was the money was good. I was never told there would be stormtroopers involved."

A sharp crack told Poe that his rib had been broken as the butt of the rifle smashed into his chest. He was tied down and unable to move beyond an uncomfortable shift. He hadn't been broken, no matter how hard they had tried over the past three hours.

"You think you are a funny man," the interrogator, a man wearing completely black armor with only his mouth showing below his darkened visor that made it hard to see his eyes."

"I do…urh…prefer the likes of Zoober and Scootey," Poe said. He tried to not let the pain clog his thinking and slur his speech. It was difficult, but he could do so. He was strong! He couldn't break.

"I really don't like funny men," the interrogator said and began to wail on him with a long riding crop with a small electrical charge running along the edge.

Poe could feel it lashing his face, shoulder and neck and squeezed his eyes tight and gritted his teeth. Eac strike sent a little shock through his body, making the opening slices across his body hurt even more. After the seventh lash, there was a stop. He opened one eye narrowly, and saw the man yawning.

"I honestly expected more from you," the man stated.

"Sorry to disappoint," Poe replied with a grim smile. "Not as much as the Jedi's parents are, they were wanting them back home at a certain time, ya know. Bedtime, school in the morning."

"Really?" the man sighed and raised his electrical crop high above his head. "I was so hoping you'd drop that story."

The door to the room opened and the man stopped and turned. "What is it?" he barked. "I'm busy!"

"Ren ordered me to stand guard over the prisoner," the trooper said.

The interrogator hesitated, then slowly dropped his bludgeon. "Fine," he flicked a hand laconiously. "I think it's been long enough anyways. Don't run away now, Babysitter, if you keep insisting that's who you are. I'll be back in two hours to resume our discussion."

"Don't worry," Poe called after him as he and two of the troopers left the room, leaving him alone with the new trooper. The trooper stood at the edge of the door as it closed, staring at Poe. Grunting, he nodded to the man. "Hello. I say, you look familiar."

It was a joke. All the troopers on this karabast ship looked the same. So he was surprised when the trooper did reply.

"Of course, I look familiar, zealot," the trooper growled. "I'm the one who captured you."

"Well," Poe coughed slightly. He could feel warm blood trickling down his lip. "I gotta say, you all look alike. So tell me, how did you like murdering a ton of innocent people? I was just there to babysit…."

"They weren't innocent!" the trooper snapped. "They were terrorists! Anyone who worships the Jedi are no better than filth and would surely have murdered us all, just like they did my friend."

"Ah," Poe nodded his head. Now he understood. "So this is personal then."

"That's not what I-"

"Oh, don't worry, I understand all about things being personal," Poe assured him. "Urgh…..one of my friends, another babysitter mind you, was killed when we went to check out a list of potential clients you know. He was also shot by troopers, in the back. Very unsportsmanlike if you ask me."

"I don't care what you think about it," the stormtrooper said.

"Look, friend…"

"I'm not your friend!" the trooper barked, cutting him off.

"Of course I'm not, not yet!" Poe said brightly. "You can't be friends if you don't know each other's names! I'm Poe and you are?"

"I'm not giving you my name, Republic dog."

"At least give me your serial number," Poe tried to smile, but his face was hurting a little too much to hold it for long. "That way I know who captured me."

The trooper just stood there. After a few long and awkward moments, Poe shrugged his shoulder, as best as he could strapped down like he was.

"Al…." he began.

"FN-2418," the trooper suddenly and surprisingly offered. But his voice was guarded.

"I don't like that," Poe shook his head. "I think I'll call you Finn. As in FN, but only-"

"No!" the trooper snapped. "Only friends call me Finn. And we aren't friends."

"Not now," Poe smiled as he leaned back in the angled bed. "But we will."

* * *

In another part of the ship, Kylo Ren sank into the chair. His body trembled from a combination of anxiety and stress. Which were technically the same thing. Yet as he sat there, a greater sense of dread filled him.

"I feel it again," he said, gripping his fists together tightly in his lap. "The pull to the light. It calls to me, telling me I should not do what needs to be done. I know what I _should_ do. The Supreme Leader is wise and would never give an order that was not for the best. Yet…."

He couldn't say the last words. Clenching his eyes shut, he jumped to his feet, pacing back and forth before the pedestal. His hand he punched back and forth into the open palm of his other hand. He felt torn, not sure of the strength he had.

"I don't want to kill Han Solo!" he finally let out, a strangled sob. Grabbing the sides of his helmet, he disengaged the locks and the helmet slid off of him. His hand trembled as he looked at the mask. Such a cheap imitation. "I can't do it!"

He threw the helmet against the wall, where it resounded as it bounced off. He turned to face it. It stared at him, ghastly to behold. The mask of Vader. As he looked at it, he could have almost sworn he heard the gasping breaths that had been the last thing that a Jedi would hear.

"Grandfather, I have to do it though!" he said, staring at the mask. "I need…I need you to show me. Show me once again, the darkness that gave you the strength to do what needed to be done."

As he spoke, he slowly advanced to it. He felt leaden, and he came within a foot of it. Shakily he reached out, his hand hovering over the mask. Even partially melted, it seemed to demand respect. Demand that they who touch it, revere it beyond all else.

"Show me the power of the Dark Side," Kylo said, grabbing the helmet and pulling it before him. "Then I will finish what you started."

Letting out a few raw, shaky breaths, he turned the helmet slowly in his hand. The back was melted away, but it was enough to slip his head through. With a deep breath that shook him from his anxiety, he lifted it and slid it over his head.

 _At once the room vanished, and he was far away. Pain wracked his body and he wanted to scream. He looked down, his legs missing from jagged cuts. The skin seared away. A mechanical suit stood behind the glass enclosure, and his vision clouded with red pain as a bubbling liquid surrounded him. Two men, wearing blood-red robes, flanked the chamber, and the liquid soon covered him._

 _A man with grey hair stood before him. He circled around him, breathing heavily. He was saying something, the man looking pale. Kylo couldn't hear the words, but he felt the thrill and malice that grew from the wretched man's condition. He turned to walk away, walking down a catwalk._

 _Then he stopped. The man had said something, and it filled him with rage at the insolence with what was said. Kylo couldn't hear the words, but a thick obsidian black glove rose and tightened into a pinching motion. He could hear gagging and a thud._

 _A hallway, filled with frightened men. Dead men. He walked at a leisurely pace, his red blade glowing with the heat of his rage. It was hard to tell what was more red. The blaster bolts, the lightsaber blade, the blood of those he slaughtered, or the bloodlust that filled his mind. His blade stabbed through a man who has fouled himself, pounding on a door for help. Kylo Ren saw his mask….Vader's mask, reflected in the window._

 _"Pain of others give us strength!" a voice said to him, deep and baritone._

Kylo Ren snapped out of the vision, and with new confidence he lifted the helmet and set it down on the altar. Gone were any fears and doubts. Now he knew exactly what was needed to be done. He turned and as he marched towards the door, the clear reflective walls could see the yellow tint to his eyes.

 **Near Niima Outpost, Jakku**

The small orange and white dome slowly rose over the dune and a massive black bulb looked down over the barren wasteland. It's geared were covered in sand, and only the persistent non-stop movement had allowed it to keep from being ground to a halt by the sand.

It hated sand. It was hard and coarse. And it got into everywhere. It wanted to be somewhere that soft and smooth. It shook back and forth wildly. There was no time for such wooden thoughts, as C-3PO called it.

Now _that_ was an old droid. It was at least five decades old according to the Princess. How it was still managing to function was beyond its programming's comprehension. It had to have been well taken care of. Not at lot of masters would have put so much care into it.

Perhaps Master Poe would take care of it like that. First BB-8 had to save Master Poe. From the filthy white chassied men. And that required finding a settlement with long range communications. It was too small a droid to save Master Poe itself.

There was a settlement. It was round in shape, much like its own round body. Just not as aesthetically pleasing, if it did say so itself. There were buildings, and fleshy beings walked around, wearing long cloth outer-shells. Why Fleshers needed such cloth outer-shells was beyond BB-8. It extended its antenna and lowered it, pointing in the direction of the village.

It swept it with its mid-range scanner. It wasn't as powerful and long-range as the old astromech models, but it was more precise. There it was! Its antenna made a boing sound as it fixed in a general location.

BB-8 zoomed in with its optical lense and saw it came from a small shack. It was square, like a Gonk droid. BB-8 had one dated a Gonk droid. At least, what it assumed was dating. It had seen the flesher do something called dating which had involved a lot of alone time. It had been number GNK-7722. It would a robust Gonk and they had experienced much fun together. At least, that's what it assumed was fun. BB-8 wasn't a protocol droid so it had to guess what was fun and what wasn't.

It would wait until nightfall and then transmit to the Flesher called General Leia. Master Poe spoke very highly of her. BB-8 almost wanted to say _he_ wanted to date and have fun with the General. But it was not it's place to speculate on Master Poe's behavior.

BB-8 could only hope that Master Poe had been serious about telling it to leave them and contact the General. It couldn't have stopped the White Chasses, but it could have done something! So BB-8 waited, thinking the burning ball of sun would never set.

 ** _Millennium Falcon_** **, Corellian System.**

The _Falcon_ dropped out of hyperspace, and Kira felt herself being tugged by the gravitational shift as it came out into sub-light. She was hanging upside down in a lower portion of the ship, her legs wrapped around a cross-beam. It was the best way to fit into this section, and she used her fingers to unscrew a fuse from its socket.

She examined it and could see the burnt edges. She licked her lips as she looked at it, rather weird being upside down.

"Well?" Han called down to her.

"Yep, just as we expected," she called back up. With an effort she threw it up to him. It missed and fell back to her. It bounced off her hip and became wedged in a very small spot that she'd be unable to hook out with her fingers. "Karabast. Well, it's the fuse, just like you expected. We'll need a new one."

"Alright," he responded. "I'll see if we have a new one when we land to replace it. And watch your mouth young lady. No kid of mine is going to have bad language."

 _Kid of mine._ Han had no idea of the thrill it sent through her. She felt warmth spread through her chest at that. Grabbing either side of the small space, she pushed upwards as she unlocked her legs from around the crossbeam. Massive hands grabbed her and helped haul her out.

Next thing she knew, she was sitting on the deck. Chewbacca gave her a pat on the shoulder as she held her head. Having been upside down as long as she had been, made her lightheaded as all the blood rushed back down through her body to where it was supposed to be.

The entire lights in this section of the hull of the ship were out. So much for the Government mandatory inspections supposed to make the ship tip-top shape!

Even as she sat, she could hear the atmosphere rushing past the hull of the ship as it descended towards a planet. Pushing herself up, she moved towards the cockpit. Ghent was using the refresher, which probably was awkward during planetary reentry. Sliding through the open door, she took a seat in the co-pilots chair, Han already at the pilot dashboard.

The world of Corellia was sprawled before them. Mountains jutted all over the landscape, although a few plains stretched out between chains of the mountains. Massive cities sprawled wherever there was a large plain and as they came between a long series of mountain ranges, there were small villages and small towns in the valleys.

"Reset the altitude frequency to mountainous terrain," Han said to her, pulling the accelerator lever back to slow the acceleration of the _Falcon_.

Kira reached over to the frequency reader and wiggling a small switch, a small screen popped up with altitude option. Opening a planetary menu, she put in mountains. At once the frequency changed and she could feel as the _Falcon_ adjusted to the new parameters.

Chewbacca could be heard in the background, and Ghent saying something to him. She leaned back in her chair and watched as the mountains sped past them, most of the bare of all trees. Compared to the immense vastness of space, which was all but empty, there was always something planetside to take one's attention.

She was watching as they exited the particular chain of mountains and approached a solitary mountain surrounded by heavy woods when Ghent entered the cockpit. He looked out to the scenery than took the pilot side passenger seat and sank into it, a small PADD in his hand that he was working on. Probably more code.

"Where's Chewie?" Han asked.

"Said something about being hungry," Ghent remarked. "At least, I think he said eat. I always get 'eat' and 'seat' confused with Shyriiwook."

"How have you ever learned how to speak Shyriiwook?" Kira asked. "I've been with the crew for six _years_ and I still can't understand it."

"You'll never learn how to speak it," Han said, holding up a dismissive hand. "I've been with Chewie for over forty years and I _still_ can't speak it. It's best if you just focus on trying to learn how to understand it. Yet I don't even understand everything about it. Not when there what, almost one hundred fifty words for wood?

"But I bet you he said eat. Chewie is always thinking with his stomach. Gets him in trouble like that time…."

"' _On Endor._ ' I know!" Ghent rolled his eyes.

"Hey, are you staying with us at the Solo homestead?" Kira asked, turning to him.

"Nah," he shook his head. "I'm actually going to be heading out to Coronet City as soon as we get the ship settled down. You know that slicer that Maz told me about?" Not really, but Kira shrugged anyways. "I've been in contact with her actually and we just got to talking. She wants to come here to Corellia! Take a look and tell me what you think of her!"

He handed over the PADD to Kira and frowning, she took a look at the woman. Orange skin with white skin tattoos that partially covered her arms in lines, she had a tall set of head horns and lekus that draped down to her….well….she was quiet sure those weren't real breasts, with how large they were.

"Looks rather serious," she finally said, handing it over.

"Let me take a look," Han said, intercepting it and taking a quick look. "Yeah Ghent, if you were thinking anything was going to happen with _that_ you are sadly mistaken."

"Give me that!" the slicer cried as he grabbed it and ripped it out of Han's hand. "No need to break down my dreams."

The trip quickly came to end after that, the Solo family home set in the solitary mountain. There were a dozen houses set in the mountain side, each far enough apart to not be bothered by the others unless they made an extra effort. A large landing platform jutted from the main structure wide enough for the _Falcon_ and two small ships to nestle close to each other. Three tier stories of the house rose, each tier smaller than the one below. The walls were made of a glass that darkened and became clearer on command.

Kira, soon with her satchel hoisted on her back, minus the holocrons and lightsaber as Han hadn't given them back, she entered the house. It was strange to think that Han Solo the Smuggler had actually been raised in such opulent circumstances. Maintenance droids had kept the house looking fine, and Kira, once she had entered the house, made for the stairs. They were an ivory white and she headed up to the second floor, where she had always been roomed whenever the Han Solo had returned home. Usually this was when his wife was also there.

She liked Princess Leia, but when she had asked earlier if Leia was going to be there, Han had shaken his head. "Not this time" was all he had said, although he obviously did not like it.

This wasn't the Solo home though. This was _her_ home. They had actually signed the digital documents to have her be adopted into the family on the trip from Wayland and now, she was a part of the family. The door opened, and seeing the nice, well-made bed, she dropped the satchel; and collapsed onto the bed. Sleep took her, but not without a big smile breaking over her face.

She was home.

"You!" Kylo Ren said to the trooper that was leaving the interrogation cell. "FN-2418, yes?"

"Yes, sir," the trooper said.

"You will accompany me," he said.

The trooper fell in behind him as he continued walking towards the interrogation room he wanted. The door slid open and he stepped through. Jacen was strapped to an inclining table, similar as the 'Babysitter'. Small electrical shots flared out from near his youths head, and he could see the small burn marks to either side of his temple.

"Comfortable?" Kylo asked.

"Not really," Jacen said, his teeth gritted from trying to bite off yelps with each spark.

"I have a mission, to prevent Han Solo from becoming a problem to the First Order and its goals," he said. "That's where you come in. I can use the Force to find him, but I need to have a boost of power to hone in. You can help me with that."

The youth squinted his eyes. "I'm not helping you kill Uncle Han," he declared defiantly, wincing as another spark shot out.

"Not willingly but you will," he said. The masked man walked to a comm-panel and pushed a button. "Bring her inside."

He let the button go and stood there, arms crossed. His HUD told him everything about the young man's condition. He could even see read-outs say the heart was pounding more rapidly than usual. They were standing there for no more than a few minutes, when the door to the room opened. In was dragged Jaina, looking beaten. Bruises and burn-marks matching her brother's were on either side of her temple.

She was forced to her knees, but her eyes showed a proud defiance of anything that could be done to her. She puckered up her lips and spat a long stream of spittle that did not reach either Kylo or her brother, but still showed her resistance all the same.

"You see," Kylo said, walking up to Jacen. He put his hand on the boys shoulder and pointed. "What I need is your pain. Suffering gives me power. I will torture your sister, and it will be painful. When you reach a stage of agony yourself, you will feed my power for this feat of power I must do."

He could feel the sudden fear that shot in his cousin. But he shook his head, refusing to give his menacing cousin the satisfaction.

'We won't be broken!" he said.

"We'll see," Kylo patted his cheek and took a long step to the side. He reached out his hand and gripped the young girl with the Force.

He had learned how to torture with the Force from the Supreme Leader. The Supreme Leader may have been the leader of a great empire, yet he was willing to take the time to help develop some of the young fallen Jedi's talents. He had given him so much, status and the reward that Kylo felt was his by right.

He could feel the girl through the Force. Every bit of her, not only the body but also the mind. The Force without that connected her to the Cosmic Force. He reached for her mind, but found in blocked by durasteel doors. He tried clawing at it, fighting for any small opening that would allow him to slip in and begin his work. Yet the young girl was resilient. Extremely resilient.

"Impressive," he said, but even now he could see the scowl growing across her face. Her forehead was wrinkled as she furrowed her brow. "I am most impressed with your mental barriers, Jaina. Your father would be proud."

"Go…to…hell!" she hissed between her teeth.

"That's exactly where we are going," he assured her, and switched his focus.

He reached for nerve clusters. Ah yes. That one in the neck. He gripped it hard with the Force and her neck shot back and she let out a small whimper. He moved up to the one next to her jaw. He gripped it hard with the Force and her law locked. He moved to the temple nerve cluster and she gasped aloud as throbbing pain shot through her head. He let go of each cluster right before he grabbed another cluster but he kept moving.

Then, he grabbed the nerves that were in the pinkies. Those were some of the most painful and Jaina howled as it felt like fire was running up her arms. The pain he ravaged her body with spilled over to Kylo and he could feel his power growing. He began to reach out with the Force, looking for Han Solo. At the same time, he could feel her brother beginning to crack.

"Soon," he rasped, his lust for power being filled. "Soon you will give me what I want."

He moved to the nerves on the shins and when he grabbed them, she nearly crumpled to the floor, her legs spasming. Now he felt it! Her resistance had been considerable, but at long last she had cracked. Her mind's defenses collapsed, and he plunged into it. He filled her mind with visions of monsters, of memories of blood. Some of her own, and some of others. He pumped her mind full of the visions he had seen of Vader's blood swath he had carved throughout the universe.

Jaina was screaming. He could feel her screams in his soul and he drank in the rush of Force adrenaline some might have called it. Then her brother finally broke. He was screaming in pain of the soul, unable to help his sister.

And there it was.

"Ah yes," he said with a smile. His voice was raspy, as raspy as if he were in the throes of ecstasy. "He is on Corellia, and he has the girl with him. Thank you Jaina and Jacen."

And with that, he gripped both of their nerve clusters and they felt unconscious. He stormed out of the room, imagining his revenge soon at hand against the man who had so casually tossed him aside. And as he left, one stormtrooper was so shaken, he tore of his helmet and vomited in the corner.

 **Niima Outpost, Jakku**

BB-8 rolled into the village. It would roll fast to a wall or corner, stop behind it. It would tilt outwards, sweeping the street with its optical lense. Once it was sure that the coast was clear, it would bolt from behind the cover, rolling as fast as it could to another hiding spot. Another pause and another sweep, and it would shoot out again. What could have taken the little droid a minute or two at most stretched out to around ten minutes. Every milliseconds seemed to extend forever for the little droid.

It has no idea who it could trust. Who of the Fleshers were secretly loyal to the First Order? Even some droids were loyal to it. The thought made BB-8 shudder. It was one thing to be programmed off the assembly line, but to willingly decide to become agents of those bad Fleshers? It hated thinking some droids would be so poorly programmed that they would ever consider working with them.

It finally rolled up to the square-Gonk shaped shack. A small door had the shack locked to Fleshers who wanted to break in. Luckily for the owner, BB-8 was a droid and not a Flesher.

It projected a blue-light on a small keypad that stuck out. It was an older model, but it softly beeped to itself. It could see which buttons out of the nine-digit box had been pushed. It ran computations through it's core and the most likely combination came in bold lettering to the forefront.

Extending a small slender probe, it typed in the combination and with a beep, the door popped open ever so slightly. With a squeal of triumph, it pushed open the door the rest of the way with it's still extended probe and rolled into the darkness. It maneuvered around and used it's body to close the door and sweeping the room with a light that appeared like a grid-chart, the communicator appeared. Rolling close to it, it extended an access rod and plugged in, and began rolling around the mechanical keys that would allow it to access the communications array and contact the New Republic Fleshers on D'Qar.

All while giving a little droid prayer that Master Poe would stay alive long enough to rescue him.


	8. Republic Invitation,First OrderIncursion

**Chapter 7: Republic Invitation, First Order Incursion**

 **Hosnian Prime, Capitol of the New Republic**

The shuttle descended gracefully to the surface of the planet, two fighters acting as escort. An X-Wing Squadron flew close to them, ensuring that they both kept their course and no one decided to take a pot-shot at them. Wind was blowing hot in the capitol city, as it always did.

It was the last official meeting that First Senator Lanever Villecham would have before his term as First Senator was over. And good riddance. Five years at this job had taken its toll on him. His honorary guard stood with the blue uniform of the Senate Guard, but he paid little attention to them. He stroked his long white beard, wishing he didn't have to do this meeting. However, unlike his predecessor Borsk Fey'lya, he was far more concerned about the rising military arm of the Galactic Empire.

It may have been confined to the Core and Inner Core, but the Galactic Empire's now nine thousand systems (another thousand had broken off to join the Republic during his term alone, could strike at any point of the Republic within minutes if its war machine got underway.

The TIEs were of the TIE Phantom variety, three slender solar wings that stuck out two on either side of the bottom of the cockpit and one directly on top. It was faster and more maneuverable than the old TIEs and had replaced the original TIEs as well. Partially to keep a lower profile from the Republic, but also because they were far more cost efficient.

He had been keeping up to date on Imperial projects from both spies and official dispatches that the Empire was forced to make on three-year basis. And honestly, First Senator Villecham found this to be the least worrisome and troubling of the Galactic Empire's rebuilding.

The TIE Phantoms landed as the shuttle, the newer Mu-2 Long Range Shuttle, much like the old Lambda-Class shuttles only without the top fin landed, pure red in paint. He straightened his back as the landing crafts ramp descended, air hissing as the hydraulics released pressure.

Out of the shuttle strode six men. They wore blood red armor, but they did not have any helmets. Each man wore a blood red cape that draped from their back and had a long pony-tail that was tied behind their head. Two were woman, but they were just as tough as the men.

From the ramp walked a young man, not more than twenty years old. Villecham had trained himself to read the ages of many races, and he was surprised. He had expected a far older human to arrive. A woman walked at his side, and while he was no expert of human beauty, he assumed that she was a lady friend to the young man. The young man had an imperial purple robe that fell from his shoulders and down his back, and his guards fell in behind the young man.

"First Senator Villecham," the young man said, stepping up to Villecham. He inclined his head with respect and deference towards the First Senator. "I am Prince Tron Fel."

"Your Highness," the First Senator inclined his own head. "I must admit that I did not expect you. Your father was supposed to attend this meeting."

"I am the Crown Prince and have been sent in his stead," Prince Tron replied, raising his head. "He had business trying to broker an end to the raiding on our borders by the…."

"When we allowed your father to become to Emperor of the Galactic Empire in 10 ABY," Villecham cut him off. "It was with the express command that he would arrive when we called him. The fact that he has blatantly disregarded that condition is worrying."

"He is Emperor of an Empire," the Prince said, his eyes hardening. "Not some flim….." he caught himself from saying what he was wanting to say and with a breath said, "I am fully capable of doing this, First Senator. We are a proud people, but we remember our obligations. As I will become the next Emperor after my father, I shall serve in his stead."

"Hmmm," the First Senator frowned but nodding his head, he turned and lead the procession towards the capitol building, where his office was oh, so conveniently located on the top level.

 **Resistance Command, D'Qar**

"The First Order has gone completely dark," Admiral Statura said, looking around the room. "I am not sure why, but I don't like it."

"This and the news that Captain Poe Dameron has been captured, along with the children of Skywalker is bad indeed," Ackbar admitted. He looked over at Leia. "We will become compromised if he breaks. Should we move as a precaution of that eventuality?"

"Anyone who thinks Captain Dameron will break highly underestimates him," Leia assured him with a roguish smile. "I'm sure he is sweet talking the First Order into making a few new friends."

Ackbar harrumphed. "Forgive me if I don't find that very comforting," he grumped. "At least we will get back his BB unit. We need every available droid we can get. If only that _Warhammer_ would arrive, I wouldn't feel so naked."

"Trust me sir," Statura assured him, "None of us want you naked."

"When is that supposed to arrive here anyways?" Leia asked. "Has your brother given you an estimate?"

Statura shrugged and began to give a response. Yet even as he opened his mouth to talk, Leia felt something. Like a dark shadow passing nearby. She frowned, not sure what she was feeling. Yet whatever it was, it was rapidly gone.

She tried to dismiss it from her mind but there was a nagging feeling that it was important. She participated in the rest of the meeting, and after what seemed an eternity, the meeting came to a close. As soon as it was over, she took off for her quarters.

In the room, it was very spartan. Had she known, her quarters looked somewhat similar to Han's. She had a different layout, but it was much the same in content. However, there was one small difference. She had several holo-pics of her family. There was the same one that Han had. But she had one of Ben's birthday when he turned seven. His little brother looked super-excited, so much so he had just thrust his hands in his brother's birthday cake. The look of horror on Ben's face made her laugh every time she saw it. Then there was one of Han and the boys fishing with actually fishing rods, like primitive Alderaanians. The last one she had was of her holding both her boys in her arms as Han was behind them, his arms around them all.

That was the last day that Anakin had been alive. The next day, everything had changed, and she had been forced to send Ben away to train with Luke. He had continually protested his innocence, yet it was he that had been holding Han's blaster and it had still been smoking in his hand.

She clenched her eyes shut. Ben….he was still alive. He hated been filled with so much hate for his mother and father. Leia had always felt guilty about sending Ben away, but after what he did to Anakin, what could she have done? And now comes to learn that Ben may actually still be alive? She had been told that Ben had perished at the Academy by Luke, before he went into exile.

The feeling of darkness still nagged at her, and opening a comm-channel, she punched in the code for Han's personal communicator. She waited a few long minutes, running her fingers through her hair absently. After several long minutes the communicator turned on….but it was young Kira, not Han that answered.

"Hello Kira," she said. She looked around her and noticed a certain rancor head that was mounted on the wall. They must be back on Corellia in the Solo family home.

"Hello, Leia…..um….or should I call you Mom?" Kira asked uncertainly.

Leia felt a smile spread across her lips. "Han told you then," she stated, and seeing with wide grin over the young woman's face a surge of emotions entered her. How much she wanted to reach through and hold the cheek of her new daughter. "Yeah Kira, if you want to. You're part of the family now."

"Okay…..Mom," the young girl said, looking sheepish as she tried on the word for size.

"So is Han there?" she asked.

"He's actually not," Kira replied. "He's gone to Coronet City with Ghent. He said he'll probably be back in the morning."

"No parties while your father is away," Leia said with a mock seriousness that her smile made apparent. Kira giggled at that and ran a hand across the back of her head. Yet even as she joked, Leia felt even stronger that something was not as it seemed. "Has something happened recently Kira? I sense something….well, I don't know what but I feel something is, well, off."

"Well, we recently went to Wayland to clear out an old Imperial Warehouse," Kira explained. "Comes to discover that it was once a trophy facility of Emperor Palpatine's….."

"Wait," Leia stopped her. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah," Kira affirmed. "We found a whole bunch of Jedi books, and lightsabers, I even found a few holocrons and a lightsaber that I gave to Han….um….Dad. I was led to them by some music and a voice."

"You found a lightsaber and holocrons?" Leia frowned. That wasn't exactly odd in and of itself, Han's salvage company was always finding old Jedi stuff. The Emperor seemed to have sprinkled Jedi artifacts across the galaxy to proclaim his own greatness. But the way Kira had said about finding them. Han had told her about the night that he had found Kira stowed away on the _Falcon_ and he had said something similar. "Do you still have them?"

"Yeah," Kira said, "I think I know where Dad….uh…Han kept them. Want to see them?"

Leia nodded and Kira stood up and ran out of frame. Leia had often wondered what it had meant, the way she had ended up on the _Falcon_. But she talked about being led to a lightsaber and holocrons. She had never really been certain, but perhaps she could be a Force sensitive? If she was strong enough, she could become a Jedi. The galaxy was in very short supply of the guardians of peace and justice, even as they were hunted down by…..Ben.

After a few long minutes Kira returned. Her arms were loaded down with the cubical holocrons and a few triangular ones. Leia knew that the cubes were Jedi and the triangular ones were Sith. But to find both of them at the same time….not that it was that interesting, come to think of it. This had come from Palpatine's personal…

"What is that?" Leia suddenly leaned in to the screen.

Kira set down the holocrons and held up a lightsaber handle. Not just any handle. Leia knew that handle.

"That's…..that's Luke!" Leia gasped. "His old lightsaber."

"I know," Kira explained. "I know a lot about this lightsaber."

She then went into explaining how she had been led to the secret antechamber where she had found it. The visions that had arisen as soon as she touched it. The man she called 'Anakin Skywalker's' life seemed to have been shown to her. And then at the end, where a ghost of Anakin Skywalker had come to her and bequeathed it to her.

"I don't know what this all means," Kira said. "Han….uh….Dad talked to me about Luke and the Force when I told him about this. I don't know what this means though."

Leia however did. That darkness that sped across the galaxy, it was coming straight for her family. No, not again! Not if she could help it.

"Kira," she said, "Don't let anyone in the house that you don't know on sight. Tell Han that as soon as I can, I'm heading to Corellia with a full detachment of soldiers."

"What is it?" Kira asked, although she looked more confused than anything else.

"I don't know," Leia said, "But when you touched that lightsaber, it's set in motion something that I just don't know about, but I fear it will be tragic. Don't let anyone in the house you don't know!"

"Okay," Kira said and with a touch of the button, Leia cut off the call.

Standing up, she grabbed her blaster pistol from a nightstand next to the military cot that was her bed. Belting it on, she marched out of the room. She stopped next to the door, and turning around, headed back to a safe. Punching in a quick code, she pulled out a cylindrical object that she had never thought to actually need, but she kept it just in-case. She spotted an older man, with long white hair and a trimmed full-face beard. She walked up to him.

"Caluan," she said, waving him to follow her. "I need a detachment of your troopers to met me at my personal shuttle."

"May I ask why, General?" he asked. Caluan Ematt was of a similar age to Leia but unlike Leia, had taken longer to actually get into the fight against the Empire. Yet he was in there within weeks of the disaster at Atollon.

"I don't know," she said. "It may be nothing, but I'd rather be safe than sorry if I am right."

"Alright," he nodded his head. "When do you need them?"

"Yesterday," Leia said seriously. "They have ten minutes to get to my shuttle. If they are not there, I'm leaving without them."

 **Corellia**

Kira held the lightsaber in her hand. Leia had given the exact same reaction that Han had. Clutching it between her hands, she stepped outside on the landing platform. From the landing platform she could look out across the mountainous surface of Corellia, and the vast waves of trees that surround the solitary mountain. A massive thunderhead was to the east of her, and she could see small flickers of lightning.

Looking down at the lightsaber, she looked at it, feeling the weight. Truly observing the weapons in her hand. Black flanges stuck out of the pommel of the hilt, a hard and worn leather, although it was still reflective. A black shroud was covering the top, sloped at an angle, giving it a look of a broken goblet. Hesitantly, she felt the inside of where she assumed the lightsaber would project its energy blade from. Small nodes were in a circle, and a small hole of no larger than her pinkie went into the chamber.

She felt a raised portion of the hilt, a golden slider. She had no idea what it was for, but it slide forward and back, three soft clicks sounding. And then, there was a red button. This was hers, right? Should she….should she practice with it?

She stuck the projector the blade away from her. Her hand trembled as she reached out to touch the button. Her hand was still trembling when she pushed down.

A vibrant blue blade shot forth, the core white but the immitted color that surrounded the core blue. And she promptly dropped it, squealing as she jumped back. The lightsaber blade immediately extinguished upon leaving her hand and fell to the ground, bouncing a few times. Once her heart stopped threatening to thunder right out of her chest, she began to think about what had happened.

Shakily, she grabbed the lightsaber hilt and brought it back up to her chest height. She pushed the button and the laser shot forth again with a clear _snap-hiss._ This time she deliberately dropped it. The blade again extinguished before hitting the ground. She picked it up twice more and did the same thing with the same result.

"Okay," she muttered, picking it up. "So, you don't stay on if I let go. A safety precaution?"

It would make sense, that the lightsaber had inherent safeguards in place so that way Jedi didn't accidentally slice off their fingers or toes by stepping on the blade after dropping it in a fight. She stood to her full height and turned it on again. For the fifth time the blade roared into life. She pushed the button and it turned off with a hiss.

Now that she understood how the lightsaber turned on and some of its safety features, she felt like exploring it more. Flipping it on, this time she focused on how it felt. It was….heavier than she expected it to be. The blade was lighter than the hilt, but it seemed to try throwing off her balance by the weight which was deceptively not _that_ light. She swung it around with flicks of her wrist and she noticed that it had a pull to it.

She then began messing with the flanges while holding the blade away from her. None of them did anything. But when she grabbed the lever and slid it, the blade shortened. The first click down to three-fourths length. The next by half. The last click left it at exactly a quarter of the length it had. After fiddling with it, she found that three-fourths length suited her best, as it had the best fit.

She began to swing it around. This was _not_ her staff and she quickly realized that her training with the staff which required two hands, had her off kilter, as the weapon did not hold her like an anchor. No, _she_ was the anchor, and at times she held the blade with both hands and swing it. Despite her best efforts, even this shortened blade had her balance all wrong. She found herself wincing as the blade would slice into the deck, leaving a red glowing scar or she would accidentally sever the heads of Corellian Starflowers that grew from the sides of the house that was next to the mountain.

She was no master though, and after about ten minutes of slashing at the air (and sometimes hitting actual stuff) she deactivated the lightsaber. She was no master, and there was no way she felt she'd hold her own against someone trained with the blade.

She returned to the house, closing the door behind her. She honestly didn't know why Leia…uh….Mom had told her to lock the door. So she didn't, but retreated up to Dad's…..uh….Han's room and put the lightsaber back on the dresser where she had found it.

Returning to the main room, with droids moving about cleaning, she grabbed one of the holocrons and went to the sofa. It was square and blue, with golden outlines that cut the cube into smaller sections. She could easily see through the glass and as she studied it visually, there was no blemishes. The was nothing to indicate how to activate it.

"Okay," she said, chewing on her bottom lip. "Let's see how you turn on."

She pushed random blocks on the holocron. She spoke to it, trying to see if it was voice activated. She shook it. She rubbed its sides. She flipped it between her fingers, spinning it. She at one point even licked it. It had a very strange metallic taste to it and she ran over to the sink to wash out the taste. As the water ran, she got an idea.

She ran back, picked up the holocron and ran it under water. Perhaps it needed it to be clean to work. Yet, it still didn't work. Angrily, she threw it across the room. With a growl Chewbacca's hand grabbed the holocron from mid-air catching it. Kira's eyes went wide as she saw Chewbacca and Han in the door.

"Why are there scorch marks all across the landing platform?" Han asked, scowling as Chewbacca tossed the holocron to him.

She shrugged. "Sorry," she said but even as Han was about to speak, a heavy thrumming filled the air. Night was beginning to descend, but there was still a good portion of light. Spotlights bore into the room and Han and Chewie turned to face the window.

Kira saw the silhouettes of the two men in the spotlight, and glass shattered before them.

* * *

Kylo Ren watched the glass walls of the Solo Homestead shatter as the laser canons on the assault shuttle tore apart the walls. Red lights lanced out, the inner walls disintegrating with every shot. He saw furniture being torn up, as they were so close that he could see everything.

"Keep up the fire," he ordered the two pilots. "The rest of you, follow me."

He stepped up to a side door of the assault shuttle and slammed his fist against the lock. It popped open, and he jumped down to the landing platform below. Within seconds four troopers had hit the ground, weapons already at the ready.

They had barely landed when a trooper exploded in a shower of broken plastoid armor. Kylo flipped on his lightsaber, the blade crimson and crackling and the crossguard blades just as unstable. Even as he did, a mighty roar echoed from the house.

"So, the mighty wookie still lives," he growled. A massive bolt lept from the house but a quick twirl of the blade deflected the bolt. "Take cover and cover me!"

With that, he strode forward. He did not hurry his pace, and laser bolts criss-crossed around him. He continually batted away the laser bolts coming from the dusty wreckage that was the house. In through the walls he stepped, into a home he had not called home in decades.

Even as he stood there, he heard a massive roar from the left and a massive fist come flying at him. He dodged the swing easily and lifting up his hand, projected outwards. The massive wookie went flying, and there was the sound of a heavy thud. Shelves collapsed down on top of the wookie. With a yank of his hand, Kylo ripped off the massive rancor head and threw it across the room, smashing into the pile that buried him.

Another series of bolts lanced out from behind a kitchen door. He leapt forward and with a roar of fury, his lightsaber cut a massive semi-circle from the wall. The piece of wall fell, revealing a girl who swung a large staff at him. He caught the staff his hand and slashed in a circle. The staff broke in half.

The girl stared defiantly but a massive hit across the head with the still glowing cut staff dropped her. And with a flick of his lightsaber, he held the blade at the throat of a man who looked extremely old. Han slowly dropped the blaster and with a thud, it fell on the ground.

"You've become old," he said, his vocalizer masking the surprise in his voice. He had always envisioned coming back triumphant and his father would look the same as he did when Kylo had been a boy. "I don't know what I expected, but I guess we all grow old.'

"I'm not sure how I should take that," Han said, his voiced edged with defiance. "But a man can look however he wants in his own home. And no scruffy nerf herder that comes barging in where they are unwanted has any say."

"Perhaps the mask makes it hard to know who I am," Kylo said angrily. "But a son should always be welcome back home with open arms. If a parent really loves them, of course. Which is a foreign concept to you."

Han Solo had a blank look on his face. Holding his lightsaber up to the man's throat, Kylo reached up and pushed the release for his helmet. He dramatically lifted in and let his arm drop, holding the helmet. He looked at his father, and Han's eyes grew wide.

"No," Han shook his head in stunned disbelief. "It can't be you. You're dead."

"No, dear father," Kylo said, a sneer on his face. "I am very much alive."

"Luke said you had died," the shorter man said and reached out with his hand, making sure to keep away from the blades.

"Lies and deceptions," Kylo spat. He moved his fingers and Han's hand was slapped away. " _That_ is the legacy of the Jedi."

Han closed his eyes. "Ben….." he whispered his name. "We have missed you so much. There wasn't a day that your mother and I didn't think of you. I have wept like a newborn many times since we were told that you were dead. But, now I see you standing before me, Ben."

"No!" Kylo snarled. "I am Kylo Ren. I killed Ben Solo. He was weak and foolish. Like his father."

"So much hate," Han sighed and leaned back against the wall. The destroyed body of a droid was slumped next to him. He touched the temple of his head, trying to avoid the blade that Kylo advanced to keep it the same distance from his throat. "What did we ever do to you, Ben?"

"I'm _not_ Ben Solo!" Kylo snapped, "I killed him. Weren't you listening?"

"It's not too late," Han said. He looked up, pleading. "Even Vader returned to the light."

"That's a lie," Kylo snorted in disgust. "One that Luke Skywalker uses in false modesty. To hide his true powers."

"It's not a lie," Han said. He reached out his hand, the fingers open. "Ben, we have forgiven you. Everything that has happened and that you've done, we forgive it. We just want you home. With us. We love you, Ben."

Kylo looked down at the proffered hand. He looked at it, a hand that he knew so well. Memories flooded through him. Of when the hands were as big as the _Falcon_ itself to his young eyes. The warmth of the hand as it rested on his shoulder. The love that had been in a touch that was rarely spoken.

"You don't know me," he shook his head. Sudden doubt was flooding into his system. His lightsaber slowly lowered, the tip pointing away from him. "You don't know what I have done. You claimed you knew that I was dead, and I have done such terrible things."

"All that is meaningless," Han assured him. "You have a new sister, Ben. We adopted her not too long ago, but she has no knowledge of anything that has happened. She would embrace you with open arms."

"Wait…" he frowned. "I have an adopted sister?"

"Yes," Han said excitedly. "That's her right there."

Kylo turned to look at the girl that was collapsed on the ground, still out cold. The girl…..the one that had taken his grandfather's lightsaber. They were siblings by adoption?

"We have forgiven you for Anakin's death," Han said, and he felt the hand on his shoulder. "Nothing else stands between us, son!"

"I did not kill Anakin," Kylo said. Coldness grew in him. A cold rage that came from these lies. "I found him on the ground. The blaster in his hands."

"We found you over his body with the blaster in your hand," Han argued, "But it doesn't matter…."

"I did not kill Anakin!" Kylo roared. He swung around and raising his blade slashed. The blade seared through Han's stomach and Han dropped to the ground. His hands hovered the wounds that were fatal and he looked up shocked at Kylo Ren. Rage filled him as he raised his helmet and smashed it across his face. "I killed Ben Solo!" He smashed the helmet again on Han, sprawled on the ground. He was on his knees now. "I killed Master Ezra Bridger!" The helmet slammed. "I killed Master Kyle Katarn!" Blood rose with the helmet. "I killed Lor San Teka!" The helmet now tore away skin as it dug into the flesh.

" _BUT_ "

 _Crack._

 _"I"_

 _crack_

 _"DID"_

 _crack._

 _"NOT"_

 _crack._

 _"KILL"_

 _crack._

 _"ANAKJN!"_

 _crack_

Kylo Ren's body trembled with rage and exhaustion as he looked at the smashed in skull of Han Solo. He breathed hard and rising to his feet, his vision painted red, he marched over to the young girl. The girl that they had replaced him with. They deserved no pity from him.

Reaching out with the Force, he gripped the young girl and raised her to an upright position. She was still unconscious, and her feet limply dragged across the wreckage to his hands. She looked, strange, and the very first thing he noticed was her long neck.

"You will tell me where my grandfather's lightsaber is, little _sister_ ," he spat and put his hand on her forehead. "For this reason alone I do not kill you immediately like the Supreme Leader wanted."

At once he reached inside her mind. He saw flickers of images. _Her on a desert world. Stowing away on board the Falcon. The friendships she made with Chewie, Han and Ghent. He had actually forgotten about Ghent, he'd pay him a visit too if he had a chance. He saw her favorite pornographic holovids, which he found disgusting. He had no need for such lewd….._

 _The images began to spin faster and faster. He was suddenly lost in a torrent of images that he couldn't pull out of. It was a flood of visuals that he couldn't be absolutely clear what they were. It was like the old flip-holo books he had enjoyed as a kid, but nothing was clear. But behind it all, there was an image of white and black._

 _Then it crystalized, and there was the girl. She looked up at him, and he looked at her. Trees stood to either side of them, and he could see that one side was dark, and the eye burned yellow. The other side remained light and a brilliant green eye stared at him._

 _"No," he heard himself say as he looked at her. The shock sounded in this vision. "It can't be."_

 _In each hand she held a lightsaber and the blades snapped to. One was crimson red, the other was a brilliant deep blue. His shock became almost engulfing._

 _"No, it can't possible be you!" he shook his head, trying to deny what he was seeing. "You can't be the one! Those were mere dreams, they have to be!"_

 _"I am the One," she replied, her voice a strange mixture of harsh and soft. "And I am indeed real."_

 _She swung her arms across her and swung._

The vision snapped closed and he found himself screaming as he was thrown back. He was trembling and he looked at his hand. Smoke rose from his glove. A stormtrooper loomed over him, kneeling.

"Are you alright, sir?" the trooper asked.

"Yes," he said softly. He dropped his hand and stared at the girl. She had fallen to the ground, and smoke rose from her forehead.

"We need to go," the trooper said, his voice urgent. "There is a New Republic ship inbound, Lord Ren. They'll be here in three minutes tops."

Kylo Ren slowly nodded. He took the trooper by the hand and pulled himself up. Calling the helmet to his hand, he placed it over his head and pushing a button it locked.

"Let's go," he said, turning and walking away at a brisk pace. He had managed to save three of the troopers that had been part of the assault team, and as they boarded the shuttle and took off, he found himself sitting in the back of the shuttle. Taking deep and even breaths and trying to figure out what had just happened.

His glove no longer smoked.


	9. Answers Given and Taken

**Chapter 8: Answers Given and Taken**

 **Corellia**

Kira stood over the grave. She had never known what had happened to her real parents. Whether they were alive or dead. Nor had she really cared. It was good that they had left her, allowing her to be a part of Han's crew and family. To her, Han Solo the Smuggler had been a better father then she felt she had any right to have hoped for.

Had had been buried in the Alderaanian style, which was straight down into the ground, feet first. His head was nearest the ground, as Alderaan had been extremely conscious of their landscape and wished to disturb it as little as possible.

"Are you alright?" she heard Leia ask.

She shrugged. "I….I feel rather empty," she said, "I know I should probably be leaking tears like a rainstorm, but I don't find myself crying."

Kira's shoulder was embraced by the older woman and she allowed herself to be pulled close to her. "I did the same thing when Alderaan was destroyed before my eyes," she told taking a deep breath. "I didn't cry once, but it didn't mean I didn't grieve. I did. So don't be too hard on yourself if you can't find no tears to shed."

Kira felt a little relief sweep through her. It did her a world of good to hear that a lack of tears didn't mean she wasn't grieving. Chewie on the other hand had retreated to the Falcon and had barricade himself on it.

"Will Chewie be okay?" she asked, looking out towards the Falcon that was rested outside the cemetery. "I didn't realize that wookies could become so despondent."

"Chewie and Han were together for over forty years," Leia said with a sigh. "I never knew Han like Chewie did. I honestly think he was more in-love with him than me."

"That's crazy talk," Kira objected. "Han loved you. He only saw…."

"There is more than one kind of love, dear girl," Leia put a finger to her lips to cut her off. "As there is more than one way to avenge what has been lost. Perhaps now the Republic Senate will listen to me! Especially since one of it's greatest heroes now lay dead!"

Honestly, Kira did not look upon him as necessarily a hero. No, instead, she had been like a father to her. No, more than _like._ He had _been_ a father. She stared at the grave and across from her, she saw Ghent kneeling against the headstone and putting a hand on it. The Torguta woman, whatever her name was, she was accompanying him, and Kira thought that she could see that they had obviously hit it off.

What gave him the right to be happy? She glared at him suddenly feeling annoyance at his obvious finding of joy at a time that felt like she had been gutted. Why should he find joy in this life when everything had just been stripped from her? The annoyance grew hotter with every second, especially when he talked to the headstone.

"I hope you find your way through the Great Unknown, good buddy," he said, barely loud enough for the women around him to hear. "We will try to live life in memory of him."

Her forehead twitched in annoyance and he suddenly brought his hand back with a start. He glanced down at his fingertips and rubbed them. Kira raised an eyebrow but Leia said nothing, instead looking sideways at Kira. Seeing the scowl on her face, she asked very kindly. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Kira muttered, and turning, walked with arms crossed towards the _Falcon_. She didn't say anything to anyone as she walked, preferring to be by herself. They were too far from the house for her just to walk back, so she made her way to her personal quarters.

Throwing herself onto her bed, she stared at the ceiling, it's bracketed, segmented head so familiar. She stared at them and took deep breaths. Perhaps if she could mold the ceiling into her vision, she wouldn't keep remembering waking up to see the savaged body of her step-father.

She reached to her side and grabbed the holocron she had been trying to open the time right before Han had died and rested it on her stomach. She let it rise and fall with her stomach. Focusing on a moment, allowing her emotions to drain away.

A sound of sputtering static filled her mind. That wasn't the usual white-noise she'd get in her head when everything was quiet. But she didn't think about it. She just stared at the ceiling.

But what did catch her attention was the sound of spluttering. She lifted her head and a holographic figure was projected right out of the holocron. It was spluttering like it had been underwater for a long time. She stared at it in shock. She could tell it was a…..well…..she wasn't sure _what_ she was looking at.

" _Oh my!_ " the holographic figure said. " _My dear child, I usually don't talk to padawans that are so….developed, if you catch my meaning. Perhaps you don't. If you wouldn't mind sitting up, we will be able to do whatever lesson it is your master has for you_."

"Huh?" Kira asked, blinking a couple of times.

" _Don't just lay there!"_ the old creature, he looked extremely old and sounded old walked a knobbly walking stick at her. " _It must have been a long time since I created this holocron, but don't tell me that the Jedi have become accustomed to letting their pupils be so lazy in posture._ "

"Wait, just wait!" Kira said, grabbing the holocron on either side and putting on the nightstand next to the bed and sitting up. "Who are you?"

" _Me?_ " the little figure asked. He had a long tail that stuck out of the back of his small body and his thick beak somehow managed to curve into a confused frown. " _I am Master Tera Sinube! Surely your master must have_ told _you who I was before grabbing my holocron!"_

"Why do you keep thinking I have a master?" Kira asked. "What did you mean when you said you usually don't talk to 'padawans as well-developed' as me? What are you a master of?"

" _You must be twenty years old!_ " the little holographic figure said. " _Padawans by your age, although my skill at telling human age has probably degenerated from the time I made this holocron. Holocrons degenerate over age and disuse, you know. But anywho, most padawans your age have already been knighted. As for what I am a master of? A master of? I am a Jedi Master of course! What else need you know?_ "

Kira's eyes went wide. This….this was a Jedi master? Like the ones from the tales? The stories? Even though Han….her dad….said they were real, she never really put much stock into them. Yet, there was this Jedi talking to her!

"You're a Jedi!" she said, her voice shocked.

" _Well of course I'm a Jedi!_ " Master Sinube slammed his little walking cane down. Although no sound was heard. " _And you are too!"_

"No, I'm not!" Kira shook her head.

" _Of course, you are! How else could you open my holocron?_ "

"The Jedi are dead!" Kira argued. "They are only myths and rumors now."

Master Sinube's hologram flickered a few times. " _I cannot compute your response_ ," he finally said. " _The Jedi are the peace and guardians of the galaxy. We have been around for over a thousand generations. We are now engaged in a great war, with Chancellor Palpatine leading us….._ "

"Oh, you mean the Emperor!"

" _The what?_ " Master Sinube asked.

"Palpatine murdered all the Jedi at the end of the Clone Wars!" Kira explained. Although why she was explaining to a holographic recording with an advanced AI she had no idea. "He ruled the galaxy for twenty-four years with Darth Vader. Then Vader was killed by the Jedi Luke Skywalker and we have been freed of his tyranny for thirty years."

The hologram flickered a few more times. " _Nothing of what you says computes_ ," the Jedi Master shook his head. " _But the name Skywalker is known to me. Is he any relations to Anakin Skywalker, master of Ahs-krrr- Tano?"_

"You just said static," Kira said. "What was the name of the last person?"

" _Ahs-krrr-Tano_ ," the hologram flickered a few more times. " _This holocron has a thirty-seven percent loss of information from degradation. Enough of the history lesson, young lady! You say you are not a Jedi. But you could not open this without using the Light Side of the Force_."

"But I didn't _use_ the Force!" she argued. "I-"

" _Have you ever experienced, you may call them visions?_ " the holographic master cut her off. " _Have you found yourself being led to place, as if a music drew you there? Have you found yourself at times making decisions that seemed not to be your own?"_

Well….yes. The vision she had with Anakin Skywalker's ghost, the holocrons, being led to the _Falcon_. She had truly never understood. But if she had the Force, she could be a Jedi! Understanding and hope filled her. Everything she had lost, it wasn't forgotten, but she found a new purpose.

"What am I to do?" she asked the little Master. "How was I even able to access even your holocron! I tried opening this before and I even ran water over it…."

" _You did what?"_ Master Sinube clapped his forehead. " _Holocrons may use the Force but using water will cause damage because it still has electrical parts! That accounts for fourteen percent of the damage to my holocron young lady!"_

Kira's eyes went wide and she tried to apologize. But he held up a finger to cut her off at the pass. He took a deep breath, although again, _why_ a holocron needed to take a deep breath was beyond her.

" _That is the first lesson I will impart unto you, young one_ ," he said. " _You must be at peace. You must allow calm and determination through that calm to guide you. Use these, and you can activate this holocron at anytime. Yet if I were you, I would go looking for Jedi. Flesh and blood ones and not memories and personalities fused on kyber crystals and fused with electronics_."

"But how do the find those that are only myth now?" Kira asked.

" _You answered your own question when you said there was a Luke Skywalker_ ," he said. " _The answers are already there. Just follow what you know about this Luke Skywalker and your path will be made straight."_

"But Master…." She began, but it was already beginning to shut down. She grabbed the holocron in deperation. "Master Tinube!"

But the holocron completely shut off, leaving her to shake the holocron without any luck.

 **The** ** _Finalizer,_** **Starkiller System**

The shuttle side door opened and Kylo Ren stepped off and onto the hanger bay. He had barely exited when he was met by the last person he wanted to see. He tried not to sigh, as it would be picked up on the vocalizer and stepped towards the man. He heard the troopers that had survived the raid exiting into the hanger.

"General Hux," he said, stepping up to him.

"Ren," the copper-haired man said. "Your mission was a success?"

"Yes," Kylo Ren said shortly.

"Very good," Hux said with a slight, mocking bow. "The Supreme Leader's trust has been well-placed it seems."

"Did you have any doubt?" Kylo demanded.

"Always," Hux grinned. "I can inform the Supreme Leader of your success and then we will be able to launch R-Day on schedule. Imagine Ren, the beginning of the end of the weak New Republic, and our brothers in the Galactic Empire shall rejoice as we liberate them."

Kylo Ren didn't really care. He stepped past Hux, and Hux had to turn and follow him. To be completely honest, Kylo Ren didn't care about the Galactic Empire. It could rot for all he cared. He didn't want to rule a vast empire. All he wanted was the chance to exact vengeance on the Jedi who had held him back. Here, he could be exactly what he wanted to be without the limitations of the dogmatic Jedi.

"What has the Babysitter revealed to you?" he cut into Hux's pontificating.

"He has only revealed all the ways he'd do the Interrogators mother and he has babysat for ewoks," Hux scoffed. "Just to imagine that…."

Kylo Ren reached out and grabbed Hux by the chest. Hux's eyes said all that his voice couldn't. The shocked indignation at being touched without permission. He, who commanded the Starkiller Fleet, being touched by Ren. Technically, Kylo wasn't allowed to touch him, per Snoke's own orders, but he didn't care.

"What you are telling me is that I have been gone four days and you have been _incapable_ of doing something so insignificant as breaking him?" he demanded.

" _Get. Your. Hand. Off. Me._ " Hux snarled, spitting out each word like a curse.

"Fine," Kylo spun on his heel, aiming straight for a turbolift. "I'll do it myself. As your men seem incapable of…."

"I will not have you question my men and their abilities!" Hux snapped.

"I wouldn't have to if they did their jobs properly," Kylo spat back over his shoulder.

This annoyance and rage, fueled by his own anger and disgust with not only Hux but with himself blinded him to everything going on around him. He had almost wavered in the end, when it had come to killing Solo. He had almost decided to abandon what he knew to be right and proper. But then….then those _lies_ came spilling out of the old man's lips. He had overcome the weakness, and now he was stronger for it!

He kept repeating that to himself as he marched down the long hallway, Hux keeping close behind him. Let the fool see a true master at work! The door to the interrogation chamber opened and the trooper inside stiffened as he entered the room.

"It's been a while," the Babysitter said strapped to his chair. "I was beginning to think you had forgotten you."

"Contrary to your own inflated value of self, you are not the most important thing in the galaxy," Kylo snorted.

"That's what I've been saying!" the man said, sounding relieved. "Now if you will just let me go…."

"I am in no mood for your games," Kylo cut him off.

The man shrugged. "I really can't understand you through the mask," he said, then turning said with a bright smile, "Ginger! Come to steal my soul?"

"He is right about the mask," Hux agreed, shrugging.

"See, he knows…." The man began but Kylo was done with this attempt at levity. He threw his hand up and the man's head smashed into the back of the vertical table. He grunted, a scab from a wound splitting open and a trickle of new blood trailed from it.

"You will tell me _exactly_ what I want to know," Kylo said and advanced towards him. Each step resounding like a hammer. His hand was extended as if he were going to claw through the man's skull. "I will know _exactly_ who you are and why you were with the Skywalker twins."

"I told you," he grunted, "I was commissioned to babysit…" Suddenly it began to hit him. He squeezed his eyes shut, and his brow furrowed forward. He squirmed, as if he was being assaulted by a cold water. " _You….will….not…._ "

"Who are you?" Kylo demanded, now within inches of his face. The man's teeth were grinding together and sweat was beginning to break out as he struggled. "Ah…..yes. Poe…..Poe…..give it. Yes. Poe Dameron. Nice to have a name at last."

"Where have I heard that name?" Hux asked, frowning.

The newly named Poe Dameron opened his eyes, and a fierce determination was in his eyes. He locked with the visor's on Kylo's helmet, and Kylo could read that a blood vessel was about to pop in the man's eye. He redoubled his effort and slammed him back against the table.

"He was ordered to go to Jakku," Kylo said with a satisfied tone. "Now tell me, who sent you there."

"I will give you nothing!" Poe snapped. "I am Poe Dameron, and I give nothing that I don't want to!"

"Oh really?" Kylo snorted and with a sharp twisting motion of his hand, Dameron jolted in the straps that held him down. "There you go, stop fighting. General Leia Organa-Solo sent you to pick up the twins."

"That's how I know him!" Hux proclaimed excitedly. "He's one of the Republic's best pilots and belongs to the _Resistance_ Division. One of the three Black Sited New Republic divisions. If we can get the location we could…."

Poe brought his head forward as far as he could and slammed as hard as he could into the back of the table. He slumped in the table, and the act had been so unexpected it severed Kylo's link. He staggered back and walked right back into Hux, who had gotten too close to him.

"Check his vitals," Hux barked and a trooper stepped up. He put his fingers underneath the pilot's chin. A second later he nodded his head and stepped back.

"The prisoner is still alive sir."

"Can you reach inside his mind and drag it out while he's unconscious?" Hux asked eagerly, "The location of the Resistance division?"

"I could," Kylo acknowledged. But he pushed himself up and straightened out his robes. "But I have other things needing to be gotten to."

Without waiting for Hux to argue, he left the room and began making his long path to his personal chamber. He needed to sleep, it had been a long past few days. And Hux would be able to report the success of the mission as per his orders.


	10. Expanded Duties

**Chapter 9: Expanded Duties**

 **Imperial Guest Quarters, Hosnian Prime**

Tron Fel was under the blanket on his bed. He was naked, as was the young woman that he had brought with him. She squealed as he tickled her and she tried tickling him back. Unfortunately for her, the only place he was tickling as a region that very rarely saw the sun on the back side of his body.

After a few minutes of thrashing around, the young prince and his lady collapsed back onto the bed, the blanket off their head. His hair was disheveled as was her own, but they held each other in their arms.

"I am glad that Father approved the match," Tron said, stroking her golden colored hair. "You will make a fine Empress one day, Jan."

"My father is just happy that his daughter is marrying someone of such noble stature," she said, nuzzled against him. "I can't wait to take on the name of Fel. I've never liked the last name of Zsinj."

"Both of our fathers understood the importance of a marriage alliance," Tron said with a sigh. He rested his cheek on Jan's head. "Although, I don't think Father would have approved of us if you weren't a member of a great family. Governor Zsinj controls one of the few Super Star Destroyers left from the old fleet, and he only cares about keeping the Moffs in line. Especially since my sister seems to be in no hurry of marrying any time soon."

"She has a lot on her mind," the young woman said. "I am sure that your father understands."

"No," he shook his head. "Between me, Roan and Elliah, Father believes that Elliah is the most likely to bring in an alliance with the Hapes Consortium. Unfortunately, she has had no inclinations of such a match with them. Instead, she likes that Knight."

"Let them be happy," she said, "Just like we are."

He couldn't argue with that. His father was the Emperor, and Jagged Fel made sure that all his children did their duty. Elliah was never to become to heir to the Imperial Throne, not as long as he or his little brother were still around. But their father was no one who allowed any of his children to be remiss in their duties.

A commotion outside drew his attention and before he had a time to even ask, the door burst open. The Imperial Knights were being shoved to the side by the Senate Guards of the New Republic, and in walked the First Senator. He did not look pleased, although all the aliens had faces that looked like they weren't ever happy.

"What is the meaning of this?" he demanded. He reached over the edge of his bed and grabbed his pants. "How dare you walk in here without permission, Villiecham? You have no right to storm into my chambers without asking permission!"

"Your stormtroopers are not allowed within the borders of the Republic!" the First Senator snapped back.

Tron had by now finished pulling on his pants, and motioning for Jan to remain in place, he stood up. Folding his arms across his chiseled features (he prided himself on his intense physical training), he stepped up to the First Senator.

"What are you talking about?" he demanded.

"Han Solo is dead," the First Senator said, anger flaring. "I have seen the recordings from the Solo residence on Corellia. They were stormtroopers and a man wielding a red blade. Looked like a wanna-be Vader!"

"I have no idea what you are talking about," the Prince retorted.

"Is it really a coincidence that shortly after you arrive on the capitol of the New Republic, that Han Solo is found dead by stormtroopers?" Villiecham rolled his eyes. "Do not take me for a fool."

Tron raised up his hands in a placating gesture. "I truly have no idea what you are talking about," he said, trying to reason with him. "What need have we to kill Han Solo? The Empire does not assassinate people outside of it's borders. Why don't you look to the First Order? They are a bad of renegades who think they are the inheritors of the legacy of the Emperor. They also have stormtroopers."

"General Organa-Solo also believes the First Order is at fault," Villiecham said, scowling. "You best hope that our investigation shows that it was _indeed_ them and not you. Because if it was you, the Empire will suffer."

"You threatening war?" Tron demanded. "And over a supposed murder we did not commit?"

"No," The First Senator shook his head, turned and walked from the room. "War implies that the Empire has a chance of winning. No, we are not barbarians like the Empire."

 ** _The Finalizer,_ Starkiller System**

Sam sat in the chair, ramrod straight. His platoon commander sat on the other side of the table, reading the after-action report that he had filed. This was the normal procedure that happened after every mission. The Lieutenant in charge of their platoon would read each report thoroughly as the trooper sat across from them. His years of training helped him maintain calmness and not allow him to become anxious in the silence.

One of his very first lessons had been "Do not fear silence".

"Your report is adequate," the officer said. "You should consider writing after the War is over and you retire from the service."

"Thank you, Lieutenant," Sam nodded his head. Who knew how long that would be. Once you joined the First Order, it was either to death or victory over the Republic. When victory was won, it was thirty years since you had joined the service. Whichever came first.

"Sadly you were mistaken on several points," the man said, scratching his scarred chin. "It will of course need to be altered at points."

"Altered, sir?"

Sam had never been told before that a report needed to be altered from the facts laid out. The First Order demanded perfection and complete and utter honesty in all things. Anyting less was seen as Chaos, and the First Order wished to stamp out that chaos.

"You must have been hearing a completely different conversation," the officer said, leaning forward and lacing his fingers before him. "You can't possible have heard those words."

"What words, sir?"

"That Kylo Ren's name is Ben and that he is related to Han Solo," the officer said. "It is of course reasonable you would _think_ that you heard those words. But honestly, FN-2187, such things are not possible."

"But that is the truth sir," Sam replied. "I have been a hundred percent accurate with my…."

"Trooper!" the officer snapped. Sam fell silent. The officer sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Perhaps everything you said is true. You have been drilled to be completely honest in your answers. Yet, what would happen if the First Order were to discover that the Jedi Killer is in fact nothing more than the offspring of Han Solo? One of the greatest enemies of the New Order of Palpatine?"

Both the officer and Sam bowed their head at the mention of the name of the great visionary that had crafted the Galactic Empire. They both looked up at the same time.

"We must keep this knowledge out of the hands of the First Order at large," the Lieutenant said, began to punch in corrections and changes to the report. "Or else, we risk one of our greatest leaders lsing face.

Those words were still echoing in his mind when he entered his squads quarters. He had barely entered when he heard an enthusiastic cry of greeting.

"If it isn't Finn! The Hero of Jakku!" Slick called to him as he entered.

'I have no idea what you are talking about," Sam replied, popping off the helmet from his head. He allowed himself to swim in the coolness of the air the swelled around his face before putting the helmet onto a slot.

"That's what they are calling you," his slender comrade said, jumping down from his top bunk to slap him hard on the back. "Ever since you went all ARC Trooper on Jakku, and the fact that Kylo Ren _himself_ seems to be taking a special interest in you, everyone's started calling you that! If this was the Republic, they'd be making holodramas on you."

Sam paused as he was removing his gloves. A hero? He was no hero. FN-2185 was a hero, and she was no longer around here.

"I don't know why I am being selected by Kylo Ren to do such stuff as guard those prisoners or accompany him on _Operation: Solo_ ," he finally admitted. He resumed pulling off his gloves.

"Modesty doesn't suit you," Shiny grumbled from where he lay. Sam turned to face him but Shiny wasn't looking at him, instead was watching a holovid on a PADD.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked.

Shiny grunted. "You know what I mean," he said sarcastically. He fixed his eyes determinedly on the screen before him.

"I really don't," Sam shook his head.

Shiny responded by taking some earbuds and plugging them into his ears. All the sound that had come from the PADD suddenly silenced. Sam stared at the veteran, frowning. The man was built like a rock, but Sam had no idea what was eating him.

"Don't mind Shiny, Finn," Slick said with a shake of his head. "He's honestly been a poodoo head ever since you left."

Sam didn't look away from Shiny. What had he possibly done wrong? He had thought they were friends. As friends as two who had shared battle could be. Slick tapped him a few times on the face.

"Forget that scruffy Nerf herder!" he exclaimed. "I heard they are sending us a new squad mate."

Sam listened to the info, continuing to discard the armor that he had worn the past few days. Pondering the words he had heard on Corellia, with the Lieutenant and Slick. By the time he had pulled off his boots, Slick gagged.

"Oh mee goosa!" He waved a hand infront of his face. "Pardon my Gungan, Finn. But you need a shower, asap!"

"Yeah," he said, leaning back onto his bunk instead. "I just wanna get a nap first."

"Don't say I didn't offer you solid advise, Sam Skyler," Slick shook his head headed out of the quarters to do whatever. There was no accounting for Slick most days.

Grabbing his own PADD, he opened up to his holoradio stations and plugged in earbuds himself. He opened to the Classic Empire Channel and heard a woman speaking on the other end of the line.

 _"Welcome to the Classic Empire Channel, where the the Glory of the Old Empire is kept alive. This is Stormy Jana, back from my two-week work trip to Cresta. First up we have_ Jedi Rocks _performed by_ Jabbas Palace Hutt Rock Band _followed by_ Nub Nub _by the_ Endor Avengers Band."

And he soon drifted into a deep, dreamless sleep with music playing in his ears.

* * *

"I see your mission was a success," Phasma said, leaning on the rails looking down at the onboard shooting range. A squad of her troopers were target practicing, trying to keep within her very strict demands.

"You sound surprised," Kylo said. He stepped up beside her and put his own hand on the rail.

"No, sir," she shook her head. Her chrome plated helmet reflected the light from below. "I am always pleased when you return."

"If only Hux could share your feelings on that matter," he said grumpily, turning and looking down to the troopers below. For the most part they were excellent shots. Except for the one on the far right. His aim was slightly off.

"General Hux is a tool….." Phasma said, then her back stiffened as she realized what she had said. "I am sorry, sir."

"Don't be," he snorted, waving a dismissive hand. "You can always be open with me, Phasma. Your honesty and hard work has always been appreciated."

"I'm not sure you will so appreciative of what I have to tell you then," she said.

He looked up. His helmet made it seem far more menacing than he meant it to be. Honestly, he kinda felt everyone wearing a helmet at all times was kind of silly. But, he wasn't the Supreme Leader, and the Supreme Leader had been insistant they carry on the Imperial tradition.

"Zenna Ren contacted me earlier this morning," Phasma informed him. "She told me you haven't contact her in the past few days. She was wanting to know if you were here. I didn't lie."

He groaned and looked back. No, he hadn't contact her. But she would want to talk about feelings and he wasn't in a mood to talk about that stuff. Karabast, this was going to be a thing.

"I've been a little busy as of late," he remarked.

"Oh, I know sir," Phasma assured him. "She however feels that once the war starts, your opportunity to talk with her will diminish significantly."

"The War," Kylo rubbed the handrail. "We've only got a few days left."

"Five to be exact."

The war had been something that had been all consuming. As soon as it happened, Hux's most pessimistic projections put the war at two months. But with the Galaxy Gun on Starkiller Base, it most likely would be over in two weeks. And that was merely jumping in and mopping up the bewildered remnants of the New Republic Fleet, which would be caught between the First Order and Galactic Empire.

"She also says that Darth Talon has heard nothing about you arriving on Mustafar," Phasma said.

Kylo Ren's anger flared up at that reminder. Ripping out his lightsaber, he ignited the crackling blade and slashed down, cutting the hand clean through. His snarl and heavy breathing as he tried to calm the anger was clear to hear as he deactivated the blade and reattached it to his belt.

"I will do it when I am good and ready," Kylo said.

"Very good sir," Phasma replied, unfazed by his short and violent outburst.

They were still standing there, looking down at the trainees when an officer stepped up to them. Kylo did not look at the officer, although he could feel that it was to him that he wanted to speak with.

"Sir," the officer said.

"What is it?" he asked shortly.

"The Supreme Leader has commanded you contact him."

"Duty calls," he said to Phasma, and curling his fingers into a fist, lightly tapped her shoulder with it. Turning, he straightened the black cape behind him and moved away, walking right past the officer who stood rooted, having been undismissed.

* * *

He stood in his trophy room, Vader's melted mask looking at him with its scarred visage. Gulping, he pushed a button on the wall and a holographic image appeared at the other end of the room. He got on one knee, crossing one arm across his raised knee while his other hand helped balance him by being a fist that was planted firmly on the floor.

"Kylo Ren," Supreme Leader Snoke addressed him. His old, tired voice sounded like gravel and reverberated in the room. "I hear you were successful. That Han Solo, your father, is dead. Tell me, how do you feel? Do you feel stronger? More focused?"

Honestly, Kylo felt more confused. The vision he had when trying to read into the young girl's mind had been on his mind. He did not feel more powerful either with the death of his father. No, in truth, he felt like there was an emptiness there.

"I feel pride in doing what was commanded of me," he replied instead. He did not wish to reveal his doubts to the Supreme Leader. "I have seen the future, Supreme Leader."

"Indeed?" Snoke sounded, amused for a lack of a better term. "How so?"

"I looked in the mind of the girl and I saw that she has potential for both Light and Dark," he said, raising his head to look at the Supreme Leader. His voice took on an eager edge. "She indeed has strength. If we could convert her to our cause, she would prove a great asset. She would help us in our quest to rid the galaxy of the Jedi Scum."

Snoke said nothing for a long while. Instead, he sat there. His eyes bore into Kylo Ren's face, as if the mask wasn't there. He tried to ignore it, focusing on something else. Like the massive scar running down the middle of Snoke's head. Like the wound of a saber.

"I hear many words in the present tense," Snoke at long last said. "I heard many words in then future tense. I hear nothing in the past tense. I must be mistaken, she surely does not live still."

"Supreme Leader?" Kylo asked confused.

"Because if she was still alive, then I would be most disappointed with my Master of the Knights of Ren," Snoke continued. Each word his voice became darker, and the hologram crackled more and more as his anger began to spill out. "Because did not I command her _death_? Did I not order her extinguished because I saw her potential?"

"I wished to look into her mind to discover the whereabouts of the Skywalker blade, which is mine by-" he began….only to realize his error by trying to justify his actions.

"REN!" Snoke bellowed. The hologram was a filled of static, the dark side that spilled from him completely distorting the image. " _I do not care for your childish claims on a lightsaber half a century old!_ I expect my acolytes to do as commanded! I care only for the destruction of the Jedi and I have seen that this girl's future is far more dangerous than a dozen Jedi Masters to our cause! Next time you have her in your sight, you will kill her! No discussions, no attempting to sway her like your grandfather did with your uncle! If you fail to do so, I will be forced to choose another to lead the Knights of Ren."

Kylo felt the rebuke hitting him almost as badly as if Snoke had been hitting him with lightning. The words stung his pride. He had done so much for the Supreme Leader, he had killed and killed and tortured the enemies of the First Order. He had fulfilled every command, yet one mistake and there was talk of replacing him?

"Forgive me, Supreme Leader," he said, trying to humble himself. Snoke was the master, he was not. "I only wish to inherit my grandfather's legacy as my own."

The static slowly died away, and he saw the image slowly clear until he saw Snoke was on his feet. He was twisted as he stood. He back was curved which led him to be bent. One one clearly stuck out even through his robes. Yet he seemed to accept the apology and sat down.

"You will inherit that legacy," Snoke assured him, his voice no longer rebuking but understanding. "But not will bobbles and trinkets of a long-lost age. No, your own actions will forge your own legacy and you will indeed inherit what had once belonged to the man known as Darth Vader."

Kylo felt his stung pride soothed by the words. Yet he fiercely believed that he needed to own that lightsaber. It was his by right, as the grandson of Vader. And not some long-necked girl who merely adopted the Solo name as her own.

"Send the Skywalker twins to me," Snoke said, cutting into his thoughts.

"Supreme Leader?" Kylo asked.

"I wish for them to be sent to me," Snoke repeated his request. "I have uses for them."

"As you will," Kylo replied.

He had no idea why Snoke would want the children of Skywalker. How many Jedi had he personally requested sent to him? Not very many. Yet he trusted Snoke and his judgement. If he believed that the Skywalker Twins would serve him best by having them near him, he surely could not be denied.

"Darth Talon has informed me you have not yet informed her when you are arriving to complete your training," Snoke said.

Kylo closed his eyes, not trying to let his annoyance spill through. Why couldn't that Sith witch leave will enough alone? Why was she acting like a child and tattling on him to the school dean? He had no need of such things.

"I have no need of further training," he argued. "I have defeated Jedi Masters before. I have yet to lose a fight to any Jedi. If Skywalker should come, I shall best him. You shall see!"

"Do not be so sure of your own abilities," the Supreme Leader cautioned. "They have room to yet improve and it was overconfidence that led to the downfall of every Sith of the Rule of Two. Even Palpatine, his own blind arrogance led to his death by betrayal. Going to Mustafar is what you need."

"I will prove I have no need of training!" Kylo Ren exclaimed. "You will see."

"Indeed, I will," Snoke agreed. "Indeed, I will.

 **Corellia**

Kira walked across the landing platform of the Solo home to her stepmom. She found it easiest to think of her as that. It wasn't nearly as confusing. Leia was getting ready to leave the planet, with her soldiers that she had arrived with finishing to load the shuttle.

"Are you leaving already?" she asked, looking at the smaller woman.

"I have to," Leia said apologetically. "I can't mourn for Han. Not yet. Not really. I need to get back to the base. I feel that things are about to break and wash over the galaxy."

Kira took a deep breath. "Let me come with you," she said. Leia looked at her blankly. "Let me avenge Han's….I, I mean Dad's death. He wasn't just killed, but brutalized. I wish to make his killer pay!"

"No," Leia shook her head.

"Why not, Mom?" Kira demanded. "Why can't I avenge the death of my father? He deserved much better than what he got! Let me prove my worth….what?"

Leia had a small grin on her face. A grin that was mixed with tears that threatened to spill from her regal eyes. Kira had always admired the woman's strength and she had always felt that if she had not know whom she was, she'd be able to tell how regal and royal this woman was.

"You called me 'Mom'," Leia answered. "Without any hesitation and without any correction. I have so long waited to have a daughter call me that. Your father would be proud to know how much you care for him. But trust me, it won't bring him back. Force be good Kira. I would have done anything to bring back the billion fellow Alderaanians who died, but I couldn't. We have to accept that nothing we do can change what has happened."

She grabbed Kira and pulled her towards her and held her in an embrace. Kira, despite all she tried to do, felt the emotions that had so long been held at bay via their absence, suddenly rush through her. She held her stepmom close and wept bitterly, tears falling from her eyes. Leia held her in her arms for what felt like an eternity, although it may have been no more than ten minutes. But those were long ten minutes.

Finally, at long last, she pulled back, trying to laugh off her sobs. She wiped at her cheeks with her palms and Leia put a loving hand on her cheek.

"I need to do something," she said at long last, once she got some semblance of control over herself and was confident she wasn't going to break down again. "I can't just let Dad die without being avenged. His death can't go unpunished. I have to join the fight."

"No," Leia repeated firmly but gently. "Your place is not on the front line."

"But-" Kira started to object but Leia held up a finger.

"You have abilities Kira," Leia said, over her objections. "I know, because I have access to the Force. Not as well as your uncle Luke would have liked, but politics and the Cause came before my Jedi training And I know you do as well, from what you told me and Han as well. Also, I know you opened that holocron."

Kira's eyes went wide. How did _she_ know? She hadn't even been close to the quarters on the _Falcon_ when she had opened the holocron.

"We need more Jedi in the galaxy Kira," Leia continued. "The evil that is spreading across the galaxy can only be thwarted with the help of the Jedi. If you really want to make your father's death count, Kira, you need to use your powers for good and train to use them."

Kira thought about it for a second. Everything she had heard about the Jedi made them seem more mythical than reality. Yet most of the stories spoke of them as a force for good in the universe. That their powers had allowed them to perform minor miracles and defeat great evils that had threatened all that was good and just.

If she had these powers, and Leia said this was the best way to honor Han, then Kira felt it her duty to see it through. Slowly she nodded her head, feeling as if she were accepting a great responsibility. One greater than she knew.

"Good," Leia said approvingly. "I have been in contact with an old friend of mine. He is the only one who was ever trusted with the actual location of a Jedi who wasn't a member of the Jedi Council. He's reached out and he should be here in two days. Wait for him, Kira."

"Alright," Kira nodded.

Leia grabbed her hands and squeezed tightly. And with that, she let go and walked towards the shuttle, already beginning to whir into life as engines warmed up in preparation for take-off. Kira stood on the platform and watched the shuttle as the door closed, then slowly rose like a bird of prey, turned, and headed off towards the stars that the evening sun hid.

 **Leia's Shuttle, Hyperspace**

Leia sat in the seat of the shuttle, looking at the three faces that looked at her from the holo-conference call. Wedge Antilles, Bala-Tik and Tasu-Leech all looked at her from rooms that were varied and different. She had, of course, seen them all in dinners and parties that Han had thrown that she had attended, but she had never meet with them in an official capacity.

"Han left a Final Will," she said in the conference call. "In it, among many other things, I was named to be his successor if he should die and I still live. Ben would have become the new head of the _Solo Salvage Company_ , had not he become a Jedi and died all those years ago."

She knew that Ben was alive. There was no reason why her niece and nephew would have lied to her. Yet to tell that to these people would have been hard to explain. It was hard for her to accept that her son was truly following in the footsteps of her father. Her biological father, not her real father. He had perished on Alderaan.

"Yet he knew that most likely I would be too preoccupied with politics to be able to effectively run the day to day operations," she told them. "This was written back before I resigned from the Senate and wasn't updated. So, while I am the owner of the company, he gave me discretionary powers to choose someone to lead the day to day operations for the company. So, I nominate Wedge to lead the company, if both he and everyone else agrees to it."

"You and your Rebellion types!" Bala-Tik grumped. "Always sticking together. If I didn't know Captain Antilles, I would probably say no. But I trust him enough."

"I have no problem as long as he keeps profits up," Tasu-Leech agreed.

Wedge nodded his head. "Seeings as everyone else has confidence in me," he said humbly. "I will take on the responsibility."

Leia was glad about that. Wedge was indeed of the old Alliance stock. He understood logistics and how to run a tight ship. If anyone could lead the day to day operations, it was him.

"I'm going to be pretty busy so we will do a conference call at the end of each week," she informed them. "I know Han had you giving ten percent of your hauls to him. I'm going to ask for an increase to fifteen percent."

The three captains did not look happy to hear that and she heard grumbling. Even Wedge looked very uncomfortable with the request. She knew they could not possibly understand at the moment the what's and whys. But she had a very good reason.

"May I ask why?" Wedge asked.

"Because Han is dead and the _Falcon_ will not be hauling salvage for the time being," she said with an apologetic look. "It's the only way that my family will be able to keep ourselves supported, as the New Republic military pays a meager salary."

"I know that," Wedge snorted. "Why do you think I resigned? Yes, we can accommodate your request. Since the _Falcon_ is out of commission, I'd like to ask if I can hire on a new crew."

"Certainly," Leia sighed relief. "And Ghent will need to be assigned to a new crew as well."

"We can take him," Tasu-Leech said with a shrug. "The slicer I got onboard isn't as capable as he likes to brag. Locked me in the refresher the other day trying to fix a virus that was infecting our life support systems. On a brighter note, my wife likes him so it'll get me some action to bring him on."

 _Whatever it takes,_ Leia supposed.


	11. Reasons of the Jedi and Stormtrooper

**Chapter 10: Reasons of the Jedi and Stormtrooper**

 ** _The Finalizer,_** **Starkiller System**

The door slid open and a stormtrooper walked into the room. Although his face was swollen from the beatings he had received, Poe managed to look at him with the one eye that had swollen shut.

"Hello Finn," he called to him. He had always been able to speak pretty clearly even when his lip was puffed and split. It was a gift he supposed, something he had taught himself from the multiple fights he had gotten in as a kid and teenager. "Long time no see buddy."

The stormtrooper looked and him and tilted his head. It was rather remarkable the level of emotion that actually came from First Order helmets. Poe had heard It called "Mask Acting" but he highly doubted that the trooper was acting.

"How could you tell it was me?" he asked, turning to take his post.

Actually, Poe hadn't. He had been making a guess. Actually, for the past five days he had kept calling every trooper that entered the room 'Finn'. When none had responded or replied in the negative, he had known it wasn't them.

"The way you walk," Finn said. No reason to let Finn know he had been calling everyone by his name.

"I'm surprised you can see anything," Finn said. He was standing stiff to attention, more-so than all but the most elite Republic troopers could. Poe noted that he should bring that up to the General. If he ever got out of here.

"I've had worse," Poe shrugged, to which Finn gave a disbelieving snort. "So, I have seen you the past few days. Where have you been, buddy?"

"I had a mission," Finn said. Poe waited for more but the trooper didn't offer more.

"I have always liked missons," Poe said. "The idea of being caught at any moment, how skill is everything and yet nothing, the uncertainty of if a blast bolt has your name on it. It's thrilling to say the least. There was this time, when me and my squadron were trying to find this old man. I ended up with my second in command in this cave with these people who worshipped a giant egg…."

"Why were you on Jakku?" Finn suddenly asked, cutting through Poe's recollection. "Why were you there with those Jedi brats? Don't give me the whole babysitter routine, because I know better now. I know you're a pilot for the New Republic. So why were you there with those murderers and treacherous dogs?"

Poe gave his best smile. Unlike talking, he had never managed to grin when his lips were a mess. It probably was a grimace. But at last this trooper wanted to actually _talk._ His irresistible charm wasn't _just_ for the ladies.

"Trust me, I didn't want to," he answered. "I really wanted to get back to base. But, I was personally asked to do it by General Organa-Solo. So that's why I was there. I was asked to deliver her niece and nephew…"

"Wait!" Finn stopped him. "They were related to the Rebel Princess?"

"I've always considered her royalty, yeah," he replied. He only hoped BB-8 had made it safe and had been picked up by the Resistance.

"Curious," Finn said, and fell into silence as if pondering what he had heard. Poe waited for Finn to tell him more, but there was nothing. So, he would have to take the initiative. He could do that.

"Where were you kidnapped from?" he asked.

The trooper looked up at him, snapping out of his thoughts. "I wasn't kidnapped," he said flatly. "None of us are kidnapped. There are those who are Selected to serve, most are as part of Project Resurrection. But I volunteered!"

"Why would you volunteer to serve in a group that wants to bring back the tyranny of the Empire?" Poe asked, part horrified and also very curious as to what could possible motivate a person to join a group with a sadistic aim.

" _Tyranny_?" Finn spat the word out. "The Empire brought order and stability to a galaxy plagued by war and corruption."

"Oh sure," Poe rolled his one good idea. "If you call the complete strip-mining of Lothal as merely the cost of doing business. Or the mass genocide of the entire Genosian race after building the Death Star."

"The Empire never would have done that!" the trooper argued, gripping his rifle angrily.

"They destroyed hundreds of thousands on Jeddha, killed thousands of their own on Scarif, destroyed a billion people of Alderaan," Poe said, "Or what about Operation Cinder? You can't tell me that never happened."

"That is all Rebel Propaganda," Finn shook his head. "Propaganda meant to make the Empire look evil. Maybe it had to be a little harsh at times, but no government is free from such things."

"There is a difference between harsh and savage," Poe argued. "Soon enough, you will see the evil that is the First Order and the Empire for yourself."

"I highly doubt it," Finn crossed his arms.

Poe sighed. It wasn't an argument he was going to win. A person had to be willing to listen to the truth, and Finn seemed to honestly believe that he was serving the cause of righteousness. Maybe one day he would see the error of his ways. But not yet.

Luckily for Poe Dameron, there was something that most men could agree on. At least, if Finn swung that way. And he really hoped he did!

"You know something I didn't realize before I started going on undercover missions into the First Order?" Poe asked.

Finn said nothing, keeping his arms crossed.

"Just how many female stormtroopers there are," Poe said. He saw the straightening of the helmet and he tried to smile. Again, his lips didn't really work like that. "I bet they are pretty hot underneath the armor!"

"They kinda are," Finn admitted, "Don't know if I care for the short crew cut though. But I guess that's the only way they can wear their helmets."

Poe relaxed as much as he could strapped upright and they began to talk about women of all shapes, sizes and races. At least they found something in common, and they could build from there.

 **Solo Home, Corellia**

Within a week the entire house had been cleaned out and renovated. Kira stood in the living room, looking at the wall that had been sliced out. It was completely fixed and there was no sign of damage. There was nothing that indicated the struggle that had taken place and she was not sure she liked the changes. The couch had been replaced with an ugly green one. The rancor head had been destroyed, so in it's place had been installed a Bantha head. The stairs had also been pretty ravaged, and in place of the marble stone that had made it, it was durasteel, no warmth by looking at it.

She stood in the center of the living room and she folded her arms across her stomach. It wasn't…..home. Not without Han around. A massive shadow fell over her and she felt a massive hand fall on her shoulder. Long hairs that were not her own brushed against her neck and ear, tickling her.

"Hello Chewie," she said, turning her face to look up at the massive wookie. "Are you alright?"

The wookie made a shrug and let out a few growls. She didn't understand him, but she got the intent. The feeling behind the words. He had been locked in the _Falcon_ for so long she had feared he would never come out. Yet here he was.

"I'm guessing you are saying you are so-so," she said. "I completely agree. It's hard not having him around. It doesn't feel right."

The wookie made an affirmative and mournful gnarr. They stood there for a few minutes, sunlight filtering through the restored windows. The walls were no longer pure glass but segmented between windows and steel. Gave it more of a fortress feeling than a home.

Even as they stood they heard the whining of engines. It grew loudly quickly, the sound like a strained wail. She winced visibly at the terrible sound. Someone was using a really old engine that wasn't as well maintained.

She turned and small landing lights were growing. She tensed, a moment of panic sweeping through her. Memories of that dreadful day swept through her and she found herself burying herself into Chewie's side as they both watched the newcomer. Kira almost expected for lasers to rip through the walls again.

But it landed, tilting slightly backwards as it came to a stop. The engines slowed down and came to a stop. Chewie gave a small bark and rubbed her shoulders, letting her know it was alright. With that assurance, and feeling rather silly for acting like that, she moved towards the door and stepped out onto the balcony. The ship was a Rebellion-Era A-Wing. Any colors it had once had were dulled by the long years and its blaster canons had been replaced by the nastier multi-chambered Chain-style guns.

The canopy popped up and slowly from the sighter emerged a man. He wore a dark outer-robe with a cowl pulled over his head. Long black trusses of hair fell from either side of cowl. Underneath the outer robe the figure wore taupe colored robes. Leather boots, long worn with age and scuffed on the toes were on his feet. He was no taller than Kira but as he moved towards her, she saw the cylindreical tube that hung from his waist.

"A Jedi?" she asked in amazement. So….this was the one that Leia had told her would be showing up!

"I was asked to come here," the man said. His voice was harsh, and exhausted. "Who are you?"

"I am Kira Rey…..I mean Kira Solo," Kira replied.

"Solo?" the man asked. He grabbed the edges of his cowl and pulled it back and let the cowl fall around his side. His face was hard, with a scar running from his left eyebrow up to just shy his hairline. His eyes were equally as harsh. "I know of Solos, and you are no Solo."

"I am," Kira said, a little taken back by the harshness of this man's voice. "I was adopted…."

"Then you are no true Solo," the man cut her off. "Leia Organa-Solo neglected her Force training, because of a self-righteous belief that her role in politics was far more than the duty and role she had as the sister of Luke Skywalker. Ben Solo abandoned the path of wisdom to go running for the quick and seductive path and it led to ruin."

Kira wasn't quiet sure what to say to that. Even as she spoke, the man lowered himself to the ground and crossed his legs. He lazily motioned for her to follow suit and she did. She very rarely sat cross-legged, and she winced as she tried making her legs do exactly as he was doing.

"I am Zekk the Darkest Knight," he said as soon as she had sat. "It is my duty to find potentials to the Force and determine if they are worthy of joining the ranks of the Order. I know the cost of allowing the unworthy into the order and have suffered the consequences from such. Tell me, who are you."

"I'm Kira Solo….."

"Wrong."

"What?" Kira asked.

"Who are you?" he asked again.

"Like I said," she answered slowly. "I am Kira Rey Solo."

"You are no Solo," he said, yet again. "Just because you have adopted the name Solo, does not make you Solo. Who are you?"

"I'm Kira," she said, annoyance at not understanding what he wanted. "I am no more than that. I'm Kira."

"And who is this Kira?" Zekk asked. "What does she want? What does she dream of? Does Kira love? Does Kira hate? Where does she come from? Where is she going? Where does she see herself going?"

Kira wasn't sure what exactly he was wanting. Why was it so important who she was?

"I do feel love and hate," she said, assuming it was in everyone's best interest to just answer the questions. "I see myself living up to the name that I've been given. I don't know where I am going, and I don't see myself going anywhere that doesn't lead to that end."

"We all love and hate," Zekk assured her. "The Jedi of old believed that hate and love were unnatural. They tried to do away with those emotions. Yet it is control over those emotions that gives strength. You say you cannot see where you are going, but you have made your end goal clear. You want to fulfill a legacy that you have no understanding of. You have been gifted an item of great value and act as if you can earn it by simple hard work. You either are or you aren't."

"I don't understand," she finally admitted. She was more confused than ever.

"And that is why I do not believe you are worthy of being a Jedi," he shook his head. Zekk the Darkest Knight gave a deep sigh. "You have wasted my time with your petty understanding and ambitions and goals."

"I am though!" Kira shot back. She felt heat rising into her cheeks. "I opened a holocron! I have talked with the Jedi Master inside it. I was led to the lightsaber of Anakin Skywalker…."

"What?" he cut her off. His hard eyes had narrowed. "You, a pretender to the Solo name, found the lightsaber of Anakin Skywalker the Chosen One? You opened a holocron? Lies do not become you, Kira."

"It's true though!" she insisted.

"Then get these for me and show me," the Jedi said. "Prove to me your words, or I will strike you down for your lies. I sense much anger in you Kira, and I more than most know where it leads."

Chewbacca growled but Zekk paid him no heed. Kira, seeing the harsh seriousness in his eyes, pushed herself up to her feet and ran into the house and up to the third floor. She had kept the Skywalker lightsaber in Han's bedroom, and running into there, she found it still lying on the dresser. It hadn't been moved since that night. Grabbing it, she ran down to her room, taking two stairs at a time. She grabbed the holocron and ran back. She was panting, her arms full as she came to a halt.

Zekk pointed with his finger and she sat on the ground, crossing her legs again. He held out his hand and she extended the lightsaber to him. He took it in his hand and brought it close to his face, scrutinizing every detail of it. He closed his eyes and holding the lightsaber before him, let go.

Kira expected it to fall. But her mouth dropped open as it did not fall. Instead, it floated in the air while slowly circling before him. The Jedi moved his fingers before him, his eyes closer. It was like he was playing a piano that was invisible. As he did so, the young girl could feel the wind. That slight wind that tossled her hair. And the music she had heard so many times before in her ears.

He opened his eyes, and gently pushed the lightsaber towards her. She clutched it and put it in her lap. The look on his face was hard to read.

"Artifacts of the Force, whether they be Jedi or Sith, carry with them a Force signature, you may call it," he informed her. "The spirit of the one who possessed the item never truly leaves it. I have felt this signature before, only in a much darker way. Yet, you can also sense when it has been given to another. I must understand why it called to you."

He stripped off his glove and reached out towards her. "With your permission, I will use the Force to reach into your mind," Zekk said. Kira wasn't sure about that and her doubts must have shown clearly. "It will not hurt if you don't resist it. And I will try to respect your privacy as best as I can. But, I must know _why_ it called to you."

The music still was in her ears. The wind still rustling through her hair. It had not stopped at the suggestion and she had come to trust the music. With a nod, she consented.

At once she was plunged in a torrent of images. None crystalized in her mind but they seemed clear to him. It was as if the Jedi were capable of reading a book she had no clue of what even the language was. She was sure it must have lasted a mere few second, but when he suddenly withdrew and straightened as someone slapped, the sun, which had been a few hours into the evening, was beginning to dip below the horizon. She suddenly felt her muscles sore and cramped from the position she had been maintain her legs for so long.

"I don't believe it," he said with a shocked and yet vindicated voice. "It really _is_ you. I thought you were merely a dream, but it was a prophecy."

 ** _The Finalizer,_** **Starkiller System**

"The Supreme Leader is most anxious to meet you both," Kylo Ren told his cousins. They were surrounded by so many guards that it was nearly impossible to navigate the corridors of the Star Destroyer. "He has a purpose to doing everything he does."

"He will destroy us," Jacen said, his voice pleading. "He will drain us of the Force. Turn us into husks that need only be burned. You can stop this, Ben! Let us go and we can help you be free of the chains that binds you to him. He will also drain you as well and discard you!"

"Don't pretend that you truly care about me," he snorted. "Your father couldn't save me from his own blind arrogance. Han Solo couldn't save my soul. The pitiful mewlings if a child won't shake my belief either."

"Of course not," Jaina said, her voice almost too soft to be heard over the pounding boots of troopers as they reached a large set of durasteel doors. "You think we are beaten. You willingly enslave yourself to Snoke. I pity you, Kylo Ren."

"Do not pity me," he snorted in black humor. "I'm not the one being dragged before Snoke. I have no idea what will happen to you both. But I take comfort in knowing it will be unpleasant."

"Not as unpleasant as how your conscience feels," Jaina said. "You thought killing your father would make you stronger."

Kylo smiled to himself. Let her prattle on. She knew nothing about him. The power he wielded. What he had given her and her brother was only a small taste of it.

"Instead you were left with confusion. You didn't feel stronger. You felt sick to your stomach after the rage passed. You spent hours after returning washing your armor to get rid of any and all traces of your crime."

Rage filled Kylo as she talked about him. "What have I told you about reading mind?" he demanded, and grabbing her with the Force, he dragged her through the crowd of stormtroopers. He then slammed her against the doors.

"I didn't need to read your mind," she said angrily. "You ooze of it! It's like you're shouting in a room with reverberating walls!"

The doors slid open and he threw her on her back, snarling. A sleek shuttle within awaited them. The engines were already warmed up, and all they needed was their new passengers. He marched his entourage towards the shuttle and a pilot in a black uniform stood at attention as he approached.

"Take these two directly to Leena-Sa Prima," he instructed the pilot. "The Supreme Leader wants them immediately."

"Yes, Lord Ren," the pilot said and the twins were marched onto the ramp. Jaina was grabbed by her brown hair and yanked to her feet by a powerful stormtrooper. They walked proud and defiant, but he could sense their dread. Good. Dread would be useful to Snoke.

As the children were sat down and chained to the shuttle with electric binders, they both turned to look Kylo straight in the eyes. They were still staring at him as the shuttle closed. Even as they began to take off and leave, it still felt to Ren if they still had their accusatory stares still glued to him.

"I'm not confused and guilty!" he snarled to himself, gripping his fists together. "I did what was right. I am more powerful than any Jedi or Sith that has come before!"

He didn't notice the wall panel that was bending as he clenched his fists.


	12. Divides Growing

**Chapter 11: Divides Growing**

 **Resistance Division Base, D'Qar**

The shuttle slipped out of hyperspace and Leia stretched her back. She wasn't the spring chicken that had spent so many days of her youth on the run and hiding in small cramped spaces . No, she was old, she laughed to herself. When did that happen.

She felt the shift of gravity as the shuttle entered normal space. Standing, she grimaced as she felt every one in her body protesting her movement. She had her private moments to mourn for Han, and regret nearly had threatened to overwhelm her. If only she had spent more time with him, if she had told Han "I love you" more.

"Mother of moons!" one of the troopers exclaimed. "What in the name of the Force is that?"

Leia moved to the front of the shuttle and looked out. He pointed, but she didn't need his help. It was plain to see. A massive half-spherical shape with a long cylindrical rear section. It was the size of a moon.

"What is that General?" one of the troopers asked, his voice in reverence at the grandeur of what he saw.

"That's the very first _Warhammer_ dreadnought," she told them. "It's going to be a deterrent that will change the nature of warfare forever."

"Kinda looks like a poor man's version of the Death Star," one of them said. "Just saying, General."

"Having seen the Death Star up close, I can definitely say it's _not."_ She said as she looked at it. Terrible memories of that space station made her shiver. "But it is capable of knocking out even the most advanced capitol ship in two blows. With it, we can change the very course of the cold war between us and the First Order."

"Permission to speak freely, ma'am?" one of the troopers, who was also crowded around her looking at the massive dreadnought that hung just outside the massive asteroid belt.

"Permission granted," she said.

"The First Order is always making incursions on our territory," he said. "I am no tactician general, but I grew up on the streets of Nar Shadda. I came across a ton of bullies. The best way to deal with a bully is to walk up to him and give him a black eye. I say we do just that with the First Order. If we go up with strength and give them a black eye, they may just back off completely ma'am."

She didn't like the idea of invading another power. However, she knew that the First Order was never going to stop. The longer they were left to their own devices, the more likely it was that they would strike the New Republic in a devastating assault. The Senate had always rebuffed her advise that they needed to strike into the Unknown Regions and find and destroy the First Order.

"We have our orders," she said, shaking her head. "The New Republic will not allow us to be the aggressors in any war."

"We are already at war," he pressed. "The First Order will keep murdering our citizens. You are Princess Leia Organa! You are a hero, and if you went ahead and punched the First Order in the nose, it would gets lots of attention and people would be far more willing to listen."

"Listen to the Daughter of Vader?" she laughed hollowly.

"What choice do we have, General?" he asked.

She couldn't give good answer to that. Yet she chewed on that question and many more as they descended towards the base. She had resigned from that august body that called itself the New Republic Senate because they refused to actually take the threat of the First Order seriously. They had fixated upon lining their own pockets and serving their own ends.

Had the First Order called itself the Galactic Empire, people may have taken more notice. However, they thought the skeleton at the center of the galaxy was the threat, despite the fact that it was a mere shell. It's military buildup that had everyone so concerned was rather miniscule. A few new ships, nothing more than a bogeyman to tell the truth.

The New Republic would do nothing until the First Order struck first. And then, it would be too late.

* * *

The base was crowded as she departed from her shuttle. She was glad to be out of the shuttle and breathing the fresh crisp air of D'Qar. The heavy woods of the planet allowed for an extremely rich oxygen that simply invigorated.

"Welcome back, General," Ematt said. He was stroking his salt and pepper mustache as she noticed him. "I heard about Han. My condolences. He was a good man."

"Thank you Caluan," Leia responded. "But now is not the time for sorrow. We need to ensure that the First Order never does something like this again."

She began to head towards the conference room. Ematt fell into step next to her. Leia had been thinking about what the soldier had said. What was the point of having power if one wasn't going to use it for good? If she got a war started….well, it wasn't her first choice. But it would kick the New Republic into action, and _that_ she did want.

"I need to convene all our top brass," Leia said.

"Oh?" he asked, frowning. "May I ask why?"

"Yes," another voice said. Leia's head turned to the side, and she saw a very old and dear friend walking up towards her. "I would also like to learn why you need to meet up with all your division's military leaders."

"Winter!" Leia exclaimed, and she grabbed the slender woman on both biceps as her friend put her own hands on the General's shoulders. "It has been a long time. What bring you to D'Qar?"

"I am afraid you will love me less once I tell you why I am here," the other woman said. "The Senate has decided that all military commands need oversight. They don't want any renegade actions by military officers. So, I have been sent here to keep an eye and make sure your division does only what the Senate deems is alright."

"Senatorial oversight?" Leia asked, her eyes wide. "Are they really so afraid of us? We only defend the Republic from it's enemies, it's not like the _Senate_ is doing anything to help us! We had to fight for months to get the _Warhammer_."

"The Senate is divided on whether or not _Resistance_ Division is even worthy of having such an awesome destructive power in it's hand," Winter informed her.

Leia looked cooly at her friend. She dropped her hands from it's warm embrace and folded them across her stomach and held her friend in a long-annoyed look.

"What you mean to say but won't come out and say it," Leia said with a scowl growing. "Is that the Senate is divided on if _I_ am worthy of having the _Warhammer_."

"You've made powerful enemies in the Senate," Winter explained. "They're afraid of you being left unsupervised. But…..you seem to have gained a few allies. Many military officers have been leaning towards your point of view. Many of them see the First Order as enemy number one, and it's making the Senate skittish."

"Why?" Leia demanded.

Winter sighed, General Ematt standing off uneasily to the side. Winter had never been a woman who liked to be in any sort of opposition to Leia. She had never been much of a fighter, and at any other time, she could have understood and sympathized with the tough position she was in. Yet at the moment, all she wanted to do was throttle the stick of a woman.

"The investigation into your husband's death is already pointing the Senate and Villicham to believing that it was the Galactic Empire who did the deed," Winter explained, "And they are wanting to focus all effort on ensuring that the Galactic Empire pays for the crimes."

"Mother of Moons," Leia growled and clenched her fist. "Are they really so blind to the threat of the First Order? I almost wish that the First Order would truly invade Republic space, just to wake up those fools in the Senate."

With that, she stormed past Winter, Ematt close behind her. All the while she was thinking was a long stream of words that would have made Han proud.

 ** _Finalizer,_ Starkiller System**

Sam approached the blaster range, walking past a few troopers who were making their rounds patrolling the corridors of the Star Destroyer. He was getting in an extra hour of target practice alone. There had been a target practice session earlier that day, but he wanted to get some more in. Scuttle butt had it that the war would be in the next few days, and he wanted to be prepared for what would happen.

 _Alderaan destroyed. Scarif destroyed without thousands of their own troopers on the ground. Hundreds of thousands murdered on Jeddha._

He gripped the F-11D blaster file tightly in his hands. No, he would _not_ buy those lies. Variations on them had floated continually through his mind for the past few days and he refused to allow it to taint his devotion to the First Order. The First Order that had given him drive and purpose in life.

The doors to the blaster range opened as he pushed the red blocky button on the bottom of the door panel. At once the sound of blaster fire rang loud and clear. Stepping through the door, he headed down to the one slot still open. The visor on his helmet registered the call-signs of each trooper and displayed it in his HUD.

As he approached the last slot, the designator showed the troopers display code and he braced himself.

"Hi Shiny," Sam said. "Fancy meeting you here."

The trooper looked to him as he stepped up next to the shooter position and seemed to tense.

"FN-2187," the trooper replied coldly, returning to his shooting. Holographic images of New Republic troopers in baggy uniforms popped up.

"I thought you were calling your girl via the holonet," Sam commented, pushing the small droid that was hovering chest high right on a central button. The droid beeped once, acknowledging the tap and descended into a small hole in the floor.

"I did," Shiny said. "And then I was done."

Sam wasn't sure what to say next as a holographic image appeared down the range. He lifted his blaster in "Practice Mode" and squeezed. The figure shuddered as the target blast marked a hit. It collapsed to the ground and another one popped up.

"How is she?" he asked, as he brought down the new target. Each holographic target would remain on the ground as a new one emerged. It was to represent actual bodies that were shot. Although this was nothing compared to the thrill of actual combat.

Shiny grunted a response and brought down three holographic targets that appeared in rapid succession to one another. Sam had only been here for perhaps less than three minutes and he was already tiring of this. This evasion.

"I don't know what's going on Shiny," Sam said, dropping a target on his part of the range. "Ever since I got back, you won't talk to me. You have been avoiding me. Why?"

"We're talking now," the taller trooper shrugged a shoulder. He one handed a target which had displayed as an avian trooper for the New Republic and had been up in the air.

"What we are doing is _not_ talking," Sam argued, gritting his teeth. "You are acting like some Selected right after it's been brought in. Pouting like the world has ended for them. Is actually talking so difficult for you? I thought we were friends, Shiny."

"I _was_ Selected!" Shiny said angrily and turning away, stormed out of the blaster range.

Sam frowned and stepped away from the lane he was in. The holographic images immediately vanished and the small droid ascended, realizing that he had stepped away. Turning, he pursued the trooper out into the hallway. Shiny refused to turn to him.

"I don't understand," Sam said. He fell into step next to the other man.

"I have spent my whole life training to be a trooper," Shiny replied angrily. His gloves creaked as he tightened his fists around the blaster stock of his rifle. "I was taken at age 8 and raised for twenty _years_ by the Order! I have excelled at every single assignment that has been given to me."

"No one is saying you haven't," Sam agreed. He really wasn't sure what was going on.

"Than you come along, a _Volunteer_ ," Shiny spat the word like it was a foul-tasting candy in his mouth. "I was here a long time before you showed up, FN-2178. And yet you show up, and within barely a weeks time, you are called a hero! Mother of moons man! The Jedi Killer is personally requesting you to guard top prisoners and go on missions of hand picked troopers. I have been in the Corps as a full trooper for eight years and yet _no one_ has given me the time of day while you show up and just sail on through! Where is the justice in that?"

Sam was bewildered by what he was hearing. Shiny wasn't talking to him because he was….. _jealous_? He was butt-sore over someone outshining him? He thought a lot of this man, but he never assumed he had such a petty streak in him.

He could understand why Shiny was mad though. Spending his whole life giving everything to the First Order. And yet, as soon as an upstart who had volunteered for the service showed up, suddenly this young womp rat was jumping over all his hard work. It was like saying it didn't matter that Shiny had put so much hard work into the service.

But it did matter!

"Look, Shiny," he said, keeping his surprise out of his voice as best as he could. "I didn't show up to upstage you, mate. So what if I've had somehow have caught Command's eye. Do you think I wanted any of this? No! I just want to be a part of the greatest fighting force the galaxy has assembled. And I look up to you."

"You only say that to placate me," Shiny snorted and turned a corner. They were headed back to their quarters. "But that's the worst part isn't it? You didn't even ask for this stuff! Yet you have everything handed to you on a platter."

"Do you think I want to be listening to the Republic scum spewing lies about the Empire?" Sam retorted. "Do you think I want to be in Kylo Ren's gaze? We both know his temper and who do you think he'll kill first if he lashes out in one of his tantrums?"

Shiny turned his head slightly towards him. His body language had changed. No longer was he as rigid and defiant as he was watchful and guarded. They came to a rigid halt as an officer walked past them, his eyes engrossed in the PADD he held almost to his nose.

"You," he finally said after they relaxed and resumed their travel. "He would lash out at you."

"Exactly!" Sam said exasperatedly. "Who would want that? Always in the cross-hairs. Never knowing when he could let loose for no other reason than you were in the vicinity."

"There is already talk of making you a STAR."

Sam frowned. STAR stood for Stormtrooper Advanced Recon, a modern-day version of the old ARC troopers of the Clone Wars. They were the best of the best, and he certainly didn't feel like that. He simply did what needed to be done.

"You have to serve a full year in actual duty before you can become a STAR," Sam laughed derisevly and waved his hand as if to shoo it away.

"Yeah," Shiny said, "I guess so."

"So enough of this nonsense," he exclaimed as they approached their quarters. "We are both soldiers."

"We aren't just soldiers," Shiny said, and the door opened to their quarters. "We're a squad. And we stick together. _Finn_."

Sam felt a big smile over his face as he entered the quarters. Cutting through their differences had been supremely easy. _Strip-mining Lothal._ If only getting rid of those lying words from his mind were as easy.

 **New Republic High Command Board Room, Hosnian Prime**

"Thank you for joining us, Your Highness," the Supreme Commander of the New Republic's military said, giving a half ceremonial bow towards the young prince. "I wish we could have done this sooner but…."

"The investigation into Han Solo's murder took precedent, I'm afraid," the First Senator said, not rising from where he was sitting at the head of the table. "I do hope you understand, Prince Tron."

Tron looked around him at the table. Not only was there the First Senator and the Supreme Commander, there was also several other beings. A twi'lek woman who was the Treaty Specialist, karabst, why did the New Republic _need_ a treaty specialist? A rodian with a shift look stood next to her. The only symbol of his organization was a small clip that announced he was from New Republic Intelligence, their spymaster. Although the young prince was not sure what they called themselves.

"Of course," he said, lifting a hand and making a dismissive wave. "He was a hero. The death of heroes are top priority."

A servant pulled back the chair Tron next to and he sat in gracefully. His father would have proud with just how elegantly he had sat. Jagged Fel was always going on about having an extremely good posture and dignity.

"Just to start off this meeting," Villichaem said, placing both of his thick hands onto the table. "I'd like to go over what this is. This is the Prince's first time attending a Galactic Status Meeting, which is a far more nimble term than Post-War Imperial Status Update and Galactic Reconstruction Meeting if I do say so myself. The Prince will answer all our questions, verifying everything we say and will have a chance to respond to any complaints we have. He will also hear our decisions on the course peace should take for the next five years until the next meeting. Does everyone understand what shall transpire?"

The Prince nodded his head. But inwardly, he thought how odd it was that the only thing lacking from the massive long-winded intro was him having the chance to say anything that wasn't an explanation. He was not used to having to answer for his people, but, he would round his shoulders and go right to it!

"To start off with an easy one," a human male said. "We need to discuss the current balance of the war reparations that the Empire must pay to the New Republic. If everyone will pick up their PADDs before them, we can get right to it."

Tron looked at the small device and with a slight grip, pushed a button and it flashed on. And he read what was on there and frowned.

"Now, as you will see the past year we have received almost no payments from the Empire and as such, the interest rate has increased by…."

"Incorrect," Tron interrupted him.

The whole room looked over at surprise at him, and the human man, who was older, blinked at him like an small animal caught in the headlights.

"Your Highness?" the man asked.

"Every single payment has been sent on time," the Prince answered.

"But we clearly see here…."

"I have stood next to the console as each payment was sent," Tron cut him off again. "One of my duties as Heir is to overlook the payments. I have seen it in bold letters as it has acknowledged that it was sent correctly and that the payment was accepted."

"The numbers don't lie, Your Highness," the Rodian Intellegence officer said, using a vocalizer to translate into Basic from his native Rodian.

"Your numbers are incorrect, and I tell only the truth," he declared, holding his head up high.

"Truth, from an Imperial?" the twi'lek woman snorted.

Again the room tensed and he turned to scowl at the woman. "Better than the bent over servitude that your people do for the entire galaxy," he said coldly. The color in the woman's face flushed and she began to rise to her feet. "Look," he held up his hands placatingly towards the group. "I only know what I know. I cannot say where this money has gone once it's left Imperial space. Perhaps you should look to your own accountants to make sure they are trustworthy."

"They are indeed most trustyworthy," the man glared. "Unlike the Empire, we are not run by greedy….

Villicham harrumphed. It was so loud that it drowned out any further arguments. Tron looked with steel eyes towards the man he had been arguing with.

"Let us table that for another time," he said. "Instead, let us go into discussing the status of the shipping of the Empire and the taxes they owe for all their commerce."

Tron glowered as he looked down at the PADD. He really wished his father had come here instead of him at this moment. Or at least, he didn't have to look like a small boy brought before the Imperial Academy's head master.

* * *

The sun was descending in an orange blaze when he finally left the room. He was thoroughly dissatisfied, and he pulled the thick coat around him. It was made of only the finest material, thick rancor hide with a soft inner fur of a type of bear from the Hapian Cluster. The two Imperial Knights that had been waiting outside, twin siblings, fell in behind him.

"May I inquire to how the meeting went, my Prince?" the brother asked.

"It was a karabast of a thing, Knight Yalta!" he growled. "I had to listen to six hours, _six hours_ of every single thing that humiliates our people!"

"We should have destroyed every planet with Rebel sympathizers back when Palpatine was alive!" the sister said, clenching her fist tightly enough that Tron could hear it.

"If wishes were fishes, my dear Azlyn," Tron sighed. He reached up and rubbed his temple as he headed towards the speeder. "Got to listen to these Republic scum for two more days."

The speeder ride to the Imperial Guest Quarters was uneventful but he leaned back in the seat, hand covering his eyes. The headache had spread to behind his eyes and he gritted his teeth, trying not to let the headache completely drag him down. And of course there just happened to be _no_ analgesics in the speeder itself. If he was paranoid, he'd say it was a conspiracy on part of the Republic.

Arriving back at the suite, he wandered over to the sink, reaching up and grabbing a small cylinder that when he put on his neck at the base of his skull, release a spray of relief. Turning, he leaned against the sink counter, eyes closed and relishing the relief.

"Jan?" he called out, having not noticed her when he had come in. "You here?"

"In the refresher," came the reply and almost immediately after saying that, a flushing sound came from the room. Tron remained where he was, all but glued to the counter, his eyes closed as he allowed the pain reliver to work its magic. "How was your day, love?"

He grunted and motioned to the back of his neck with his free hand. "I don't understand why these Republic dogs think that the Empire should be groveling. We basically _made_ this galaxy and….." he stopped as she began to giggle at him uncontrollably. He opened his eyes, ah yes, much better and looked at the woman who would be his empress. "What's that woman? What are you finding so funny?"

"You!" she said. She had one of the sloppiest looks he had ever seen on her face. Well, that was the only way he could describe her. She looked rather drunk. "You are so pretty when you are angry!"

"Are you drunk?" he asked, as she seemed to drag herself across the room and wrapped her arms around him. He scrunched up his nose as heavy booze hit him. "You usually don't get this drunk."

"You think empires are important but me….I know exactly what's important, Mister Big Shot," she said, bumping her head against his chest with every word as if to get her point across.

"Oh do you?" he asked, wrapping his hands around her waist and walking her back to the massive love-seat in the corner. Jan placed her feet on top of his, so it made for a rather interesting uneven walk back to the love-seat.

"I got great news!" she said and let out a long and throaty belch that hit him full in the face, "News you can't even guess!"

"I'm sure I'll be thrilled," he replied sardonically, raising a hand to wipe away the lingering smell of alcohol and berries from his nostrils. At least she had eaten something healthy. With an unceremonious push, he dropped her onto the couch.

"Guess what it is!" the drunk woman said happily.

"You finally decided to stop spending my money," he said. He turned and headed towards a table at the corner of the room, where decanters of wines and other spirits from over a dozen worlds sat. They had taste tested it beforehand, just to ensure it wasn't poisoned.

"No, silly!" she said and he felt something hit him on the back of his head. She giggled. "You aren't very good at catching.

He turned around and looked down to see what had hit him on the back of the head. A small metallic disc lay on the ground and knelt down to grab it. Lifting it up, he switched it back and forth, and on one side a vibrant green was showing.

"Okay," he said. "Nice green disc."

"Nice green disc! Nice green disc!" she exclaimed, trying to stand. But she failed and sank back on the loveseat. "For being an 'emperor', you are pretty stupid. So pretty but so empty in the head."

"I'm not emperor yet," he reminded her. "And I'm _not_ pretty. I'm ruggedly handsome. I'm strong and intelligent…"

She snorted. "And yet you can't even tell a pregnancy test when you see it," she said, rubbing her oval face in her hand as if her nose was somehow offending her.

"A pregnancy test?" he asked, frowning. "What are you talking about?"

"That disc, you silly!" she waved her hand as she giggled again.

He was about to ask what she was talking about when it slammed him full in the face like a thunderclap. Tron, Heir to the Galactic Empire, was holding a pregnancy test. And he….he….

"You're pregnant?" he asked, looking up, dumbstruck.

Tears burst from her as her head bobbed up and down furiously.


	13. The Girl of the Vision

**Chapter 12: The Girl of the Vision**

 ** _Millennium Falcon,_ Unknown Hyperspace Route**

Kira had no idea where in the galaxy she was.

Almost immediately after leaving Corellia, the Jedi had entered random coordinates. A series of twenty-four jumps that was meant to avoid prying eyes. There was a deadly earnestness to this man, and even Chewie couldn't make heads or tails of the route. She didn't know any of the locations they dropped out of, and even if she had looked at the coordinates she would have had no idea what was on there.

The Jedi had encrypted the coordinates.

Zekk the Darkest Knight, which she felt was as pompous a name as one could gat, had retreated to the back. He had barely said two full sentences and he was in the back meditating. Kira peered at him from behind a stack of boxes. His legs were crossed and his hands were folded in his lap.

Kira sneaked forward as quietly as she could and stood over him. It was hard for her to tower over anyone, no matter she had a neck "as long as a gundark's arms" Han Solo…..her father had refered to it as. She stood over him, seeing if he would make any indication he had noticed her. When he didn't, she mimicked him, sitting down with legs crossed.

She sat there for a few seconds, her eyes boring into his broad face. A minute passed by with no reaction. Kira rocked herself side to side, skootching forward a few inches and sat straight, staring at him. When he didn't react, she did the same thing, dragging herself a few inches closer to him. She continued this until she was mere inches from him, their legs almost touching.

Without opening his eyes, his hand lifted. He pushed forward with his hand and Kira felt an invisible force pushing her back a good two feet. Her butt made a screeching sound as her leather pants skidded across the floor.

"You are trying my patience, Kira who knows not what she is or isn't," Zekk said. There was a hint of annoyance in his voice. "Why do you come to disturb my meditation?"

"You are the only Jedi I have ever met," she said. "I wish to know more about who you are."

"I am Zekk the Darkest Knight," the Jedi said.

"But…." Kira protested but with a motion of his fingers, her mouth slammed shut. She couldn't move her lips to speak. Strangled noises came from her mouth as she tried to move her lips but to no avail.

"That is all you need know," he said curtly. "You have not yet earned the respect to learn more about me."

Kira felt her face flush with embarrassment and anger at him. Who was he to tell her what she deserved and what she didn't? Even as she felt the anger flaring through her, words echoed in her mind. _"Control over these emotions gives strength."_ Had that been a lesson? Had this infuriating and belittling Jedi given her insight? She let out a deep breath and breathed in through her nose and out through her mouth. As she did so, the heat of her anger disappeared slowly but surely, leaving only calm.

"Did you teach me something about the Jedi on the landing platform outside my house?" she asked. "About controlling emotions. Was that the first lesson to being a Jedi?"

"It is or it isn't," Zekk replied in that karabast way of his!

"Why do you keep saying things contradictory?" she asked. "Why can't you give me a straight answer?"

"If you can't figure that out on your own you will never become a Jedi," he said simply.

She clamped her teeth around her tongue. It was the only way to avoid biting his head off. He was a Jedi, and for all she knew, this was all some sort of elaborate test designed to see if she could keep her cool.

"What happened to the Jedi?" she asked. "I thought they were myth. But now they are all but gone. And the galaxy seems to have forgotten them."

"What happened to the Jedi in these last few years is simply a repeat of what has come before," he replied, breathing calmly and evenly, his eyes closed. "The Jedi are myth and they are truth. They are all gone, and they are all here. The galaxy forgets everything but remembers all."

Kira tried working out what the sithspit he had just talked about. Everything he said was in riddles. None of it made any sense. Both negatives and positives were in the same sentence. It was hopeless trying to understand this Darkest Knight.

"You'd think a rare commodity like a Jedi would be highly valued," Kira said at long last.

"Is that what you think Jedi are?" Zekk asked, his forehead furrowing into a scowl. "A commodity to be bartered and traded? Like common farm animals?"

"No!" she said exasperatedly. She was getting rather tired of his testy responses to everything.

"The galaxy thinks we are," Zekk said, not opening his eyes. "The galaxy cannot abide the Jedi having any freewill of their own. They turn on the Jedi whenever it is convenient. How long must the Jedi keep getting betrayed despite their good works before they decide enough is enough and leave the rabble to their own designs?"

Kira tried wrapping her mind around what he was saying. Yet, she kept grasping at wisps in her mind. Nothing he said was concrete, and everything was cryptic. Yet it had been frank and honest.

"I do not understand," she finally admitted.

Zekk did not respond, falling back deeply into his meditation. She waved her hand close to his face but when he didn't react, she leaned back. Only then did she notice the lightsaber hilt that lay on the ground near his legs. Glancing at him, she reached out and touched the lightsaber to lift it and look closer at it. But instead, she was thrown into the all too familiar landscape of a vision.

 _She was sitting around a campfire. No, not she. She could tell almost immediately she was a man in the vision. Around the campfire, there was six figures, heavy brown robes draped around them. The cowls of their robes were pulled over their heads. She had no idea as to what the world could be._

 _"We have all had the vision," a voice said. It was a baritone male voice. She couldn't have aged the speaker but she could tell that the voice was stating a fact and not asking a question._

 _"A forest of trees," a woman said._

 _"Snow on the ground," another woman said, closer to her/his shoulder._

 _"A woman," a man said._

 _"With twin lightsabers."_

 _"Blades of different color."_

 _"One blue."_

 _"The other red."_

 _The last words were her own. She knew at once the voice. The harsh tenor of the voice of Zekk, but his voice was calmer, and the voice that ushered from her was years younger. Less stress in it._

 _"What of Master Skywalker?" one of the woman said. "What has he said of this vision?"_

 _"He says that it is a mere dream and has no true relevance on what is happening," the first speaker said. "But why would we seven have this same vision if there was not importance to it?"_

 _"The future is always flowing," Zekk said. Kira could feel the doubt in his chest as he spoke. "It is always shifting. That's what Master K'rukh said when I asked him about it."_

 _"That is a fact," one of the woman said. "Yet is also a fact that visions have a way of coming true. I have studied the past of the Jedi, and whenever there was a prophecy, it always came true. Is it not fact that Master Skywalker saw his friends in danger on Cloud City and they were? Did not the ancient Jedi foresee a great evil rising to purge the light and saw a savior arise? A Chosen One? Is it not fact?"_

 _"You are right, Tenel Ka," one of the man said. "But this woman, who is she? What is her role?"_

 _"I think….." the first speaker said. "I think she may be the one to destroy Snoke. Or she will give him the ultimate victory. She stands between his victory or defeat and whichever side she chooses will stand supreme."_

 _Zekk groaned. "Please, Ben! No more of this talk of this fanciful creature! He is a figment of your imagination! He doesn't exist!"_

The vision ended abruptly and she found herself sitting on the floor. Zekk was still deep in meditation. Frowning, she slowly stood and walked quietly away. What was this vision they all had shared? Why didn't Luke Skywalker accept the vision? Why were only seven? And who was this woman they spoke of?

 ** _The Finalizer,_ Starkiller System**

"So it is true then? Han Solo is dead?"

Kylo sat at the holoconference table. The excited eyes of the military brass of the First Order bored into him. Hoping he would validate the enthusiasm that had been placed on them. All these men and women holding him in the steel of their gazes.

"It is," he replied.

Excited chatter swelled around the table. He tried to project indifference about the event. As if it were simply one of the many tasks that he had done before in service to the First Order. Yet…..there was a nagging sense of everything not being right. He had been certain that killing his father would have swelled his powers and made him stronger.

Yet he felt strangely static to what he had been beforehand. Stagnant. Why?

"R-Day approaches swiftly," Snoke's holographic voice boomed across the room, bringing the talking to an end. "I want our forces to launch immediately after the first strike hits. We have spent years preparing for this moment. We will not allow failures on our end to jeopardize our great plans. The Emperor's vision of a restored Galaxy will be brought to fruition."

The words were echoing in his head as the meeting drew to a close. Before he knew it, he and Hux were alone, and Hux was pushing himself to standing. The copper-haired man sneered down to him.

"Two days remain before we crush the Republic and reestablish our sovereign claim over the galaxy," Hux said with bravado. "With my Galaxy Gun on Starkiller Base, we shall see great victory and there shall be glory for all. Perhaps when they write the annuals of these times there may be a paragraph devoted to your work, _Ren_."

"You congratulate yourself too soon, General," Kylo said, pushing back his own chair with his legs as he stood to his full-height. "Let's make sure it actually does the job. If it works or doesn't, it will play a big role in how those annuals refer to you. Either as Hux the Conqueror or the Ginger General."

Hux snorted and clapped his hands behind his back. Their similar height did nothing to diminish the fact that Kylo's heavy robed obsidian black suit made him look small by comparison. Turning, they headed towards the door to exit the conference room.

"I have never understood the joviality that so many take when it comes to gingers," Hux remarked.

"My mother told me as a child that gingers were created by the Sith, those who wielded the Dark Side of the Force," Kylo Ren explained. "They were meant to be a beacon so when the Sith would invade a world, they would know safe places to land their forces."

"What utter rubbish!" Hux scoffed. "Surely you do not believe that?"

"The Sith of old were never so clever," Kylo agreed, exiting into the hallway. "My father said that when the Gods made humans, they simply did not have enough souls so redheads were the ones that they were unable to provide souls to."

"More nonsense," came the derisive reply.

"I don't know," the darksider shrugged his shoulders. "The more I get to know you, the more I am certain that is the case."

"You are so funny," Hux snarled.

Kylo Ren had certainly thought it was funny. He could only be glad that the prickly man couldn't see the smile that was burned across his face, having fun at his dispense.

* * *

He sat in the small trophy room of his, his helmet resting on his lap. The helmet of Vader peered at him from it's melted visage. A horribly, twisted image that had always shown him power. Yet, it wasn't the mask that brought him to this room. Nor was it the lightsabers of his vanquished foes.

" _I am so glad you finally have contacted me_ ," Zenna Ren said. The hologram did little to show her beauty, but her absence of one of her arms was clear. An arm he had personally removed from her. " _I was worried when you didn't. Perhaps your affections towards me had cooled."_

He could hear the accusation in her voice. Truthfully, he had never really cared for anyone like he cared for her. Or felt like he did for her. She was, in a word, paranoid for no reason.

"Never," he replied with sincerity. "You are one of the few I feel no shame without my mask on, you know that. It's just been a hectic time. With the war, my cousins, my father. It has been strenuous."

" _It must have been tough for you_ ," she said sympathetically. " _You father was…_ "

"An obstacle that needed to be eliminated for the First Order to arise and take it's rightful place as rulers of the galaxy," Kylo Ren cut her off.

" _You do not need to lie to me, my love,"_ Zenna Ren replied, brushing a long strand of hair back with her single hand that had fallen over her face. " _You can be honest with me."_

He let out a sigh and nodded. "I know," he assured her. "Trust me though, I am better off now that he is dead. He…..he adopted a girl. I have an adopted sister."

 _"Really?"_ Zenna asked, looking at him shocked. " _That is….wonderful?"_

"No, it's not!" Kylo snapped. "I think…..I think it's her."

" _Her?_ " Zenna frowned in confusion.

"The one from the visions we had," he explained anxiously. "I looked in her mind, and I was taken straight to that vision. If it's true…"

 _"Then the Supreme Leader could be in danger!"_ Zenna said, her words mirroring his own realization. " _That is all the more reason for you to return to Mustafar. Darth Talon is most displeased you have failed to arrive yet, even though your mission to Corellia is complete. She's a true Sith, Kylo. She can help you find her and together, we will end the life of her!"_

No, not that again! He had no desire to return to Mustafar and train under some anachronistic Sith. He knew the histories, both the ones that the Jedi had kept and the ones the Sith had kept on their Order. He knew what had happened to the Sith, yet he was stronger than any Jedi or Sith who had ever come before!

"This isn't the best time for me to be heading to Mustafar," he said instead. "Look, Zenna. I love you, I do. And being with you would make me happier than I have been for a long time. But right now we are busy planning for R-Day. There simply is no time for that."

" _That is not a fact,"_ Zenna shook her head, her hair falling around her face as she shook her head. " _Once the war begins, there will be no time. And the Supreme Leader has ordered it. That is a fact."_

He lifted his hand and rested it on the side of his face. No one seemed to understand just how insanely powerful he was. He didn't _need_ to be trained. He was perfectly fine as he was. Let Luke Skywalker come! He would show his uncle how he was stronger than even Vader and would not be defeated as his grandfather had!


	14. The Masters of the Force

**Chapter 13: The Masters of the Force**

 ** _Millennium Falcon,_ Unknown World**

The ship had come to a stop out of hyperspace and it was the first time since they had started this trip that the Jedi Zekk emerged from the back. Kira looked at the world, a medium sized ball of a bluish white tint to it. The sound of the door opening to allow Zekk to enter, his dark brown robes flowing around him.

"I must transmit clearance codes or we will never be allowed to land," he said simply, not even waiting for anyone to ask him a question. Chewbacca harrumphed as the serious human stepped between the wookie and girl and began to input a series of codes and shot them off without saying any word.

"Now what?" Kira asked, looking down at the planet.

Zekk however said nothing but folded his arms across his chest. He seemed to be waiting for something, perhaps a reply. Kira rolled her eyes and returned to the controls of the _Falcon_. Let him keep his secrets to himself.

Three minutes later, Kira knew because she had been glancing at the chronometer, a single red flash lit across the communication screen. Zekk seemed to relax and placing his hands on the back of the two pilot chairs, he inclined his head.

"Head down to the following coordinates," he said. "45 degrees north by 72 east."

"Okay," Kira said and began to adjust the angle of the approach. "Put shields to the front of the ship for atmospheric entry."

Chewbacca barked an acknowledgement and down they flew. Almost immediately after entering the atmosphere, they were surrounded by a massive set of clouds. Kira hadn't noticed them above for some reason, but they were surrounded in a massive blizzard, and she could barely see. Not only did the ship roar with air passing around it, but the howling of winds was clearly visible.

The ship shuddered once. And then shuddered again. She gritted her teeth. "Adjust the shields to face the wind," she ordered the wookie. Yet as soon as they had done that, a massive gust of wind hit them from the other side.

Kira could feel the _Falcon_ struggling as it was being pushed sideways by the heavy wind. She couldn't see anything and Chewbacca howled in the co-pilots seat. She was flying purely on instruments, but even then it wasn't very helpful. She felt the anxiety in her rising, as was her temper.

"Sithspit! Sithspit! Sithspit!" she kept growling out. She was white-knuckling the controls and with a quick twist that took all her strength, she tilted the Falcon towards the wind.

"Prepare to drop in for a landing when I say so," Zekk told her, standing nonchalantly next to her. "Extend the landing gear now."

"How?!" she demanded. "I can't see _anything!_ How will we know when to land?"

"Trust me," he said. "I know where and when to land. Just do so immediately when I say so."

She gave him a steely sideways look then returned to the display. Reaching above her, she flicked the levers that controlled the landing gear. The sound of the landing gear was greeted immediately by a heavy blast of wind that flipped the Falcon completely on it's side. Kira let out a shriek like a little girl and Chewie let out an ululating howl.

Zekk remained standing, but Kira could feel his hand nearly yanking the headrest off her seat as he used it to remain standing. Letting loose a few more curses, she called to Chewie, "Switch shields to the top section and slowly ease it to the left. I'm going to try leveling us out."

Soon enough, she felt the wind slowly begin to ease off as the shields switched and caused it to flow around like water. With that help, she began to turn the ship to the right, straightening out. As she did so, Chewbacca tilted the shields as well. With a scream of defiance she jerked it and the ship leveled out.

"And drop for a landing….now!" Zekk said and Kira did so at once. Quickly she reversed thrusters and dropped. She expected a heavy thud but to her surprise, no more than two seconds later, they landed with an impact that while shaking the ship, hadn't broken anything.

"Here we are," Zekk waved out into the blizzard that still made visibility all but impossible.

"Are you sure?" she asked, looking out into the snow. "I don't see anything."

"Your eyes deceive, only your feelings can show truth."

She closed her eyes and dropped her head as if accepting defeat. She would never understand anything he was saying. A few minutes later, Zekk stood at the landing ramp and Kira wore a heavy coat. It was old and faded and had a terrible stench. Han had told her once it was taun-taun she was smelling. She didn't think that a stench could cling forever, but who was she to argue.

Zekk wore only his robes, and her lightsaber hung from his belt, next to his own.

"Stay with the ship," he told Chewbacca who walked up to them to follow. "This is for her alone. Do not worry though, Mighty Chewbacca. You will be most safe."

Kira glanced back at the wookie, who had a doubtful look in his eyes. She had no reason not to trust this was for the best. She reached out and touched his arm.

"I'll be alright," she said, and turning, followed Zekk out into the storm.

 **Imperial Guest Suite, Hosnian Prime**

The fine threaded cloth wiped away the sweat from his forehead. After Tron had learned that Jan was pregnant, well…..it had been a very exciting past day to be sure. He wasn't even sure if he could keep up with her at the pace she was setting.

A knock sounded on the refresher. He nearly shuddered. Karabast woman! How could she be recovering so fast?

"I'll be out in a minute Jan," the young Prince called out. He never thought he'd get tired of love making, but she was pushing it.

"Your Highness," one of the Imperial Knights called into the room. "The Emperor has called. He commands you to speak with him at once."

Why would his father be calling? He thought he was still going to be in heavy negotiations with the Hutts. When he was carrying out such negotiations, he was impossible to reach.

"Alright," he said. He reached over, grabbed a fine robe and slipped into it. He tied the cord as he pulled open the door to the refresher. "Where is he?"

"In the communication suite," the Knight said. He was tall, skin that was the color of sunbaked leather. He stepped aside as Tron left the refresher and turning, walked ahead of his to the room as the Prince walked the small hallway. There had been no need to come to the room since they had arrived, yet there was always one Knight on duty covering it.

He held the door open for the Crown Prince and Tron stepped through it. The door closed and as soon as it did, a holographic image of a man appeared before him. Tron did not bow to the man, as his father had always made it a point that family needed not bow to him. The hologram showed nothing of his jet black hair but it showed the strength of the man.

" _My son_ ," Jagged Fel said, crossing his arms in front of him. The imperial robe, purple in color but simply a darker shade of blue in the hologram, moved back as he did so. Yet the look he gave of running his son up and down spoke volumes. " _Did I catch you at a bad time?_ "

"Not at all, Father," Tron said, throwing out his chest. "I am actually surprised to hear from you. I thought you were busy with the Hutts."

" _Our negotiations concluded_ ," the Emperor said simply. He held his son's eyes for the a few long moments. " _Tron…..have you been attending those meetings? Or have you been fooling around with the Lady Zsinj?_ "

"I have done both," the barely adult young man gave a mischief smile.

The Emperor's eyes darkened. " _I did not send you to Hosnian Prime as a love retreat_ ," he chided harshly. " _I told you from the beginning that the Lady Zsinj should stay here on Byss, and not go with you. You are on official business…._ "

"I have been to every meeting," Tron said, trying not to let irritation enter his voice. "I have listened to the absurd claims. Such as the ones where our war reparation payments haven't been making it to the New Republic. They are even demanding we stop producing on the new TIE Eyeballs and our new _Imperious-_ Class Star Destroyers! I even came back from one not two hours ago."

Jagged Fel and his son locked eyes. Emperor Jagged Fel was known for many things. His advanced piloting skills, his ruthless efficiency. He was also a great judge of truth and lies, and his discernment was something of a minor legend.

" _Tell me everything about these meetings_ ," the Emperor finally said, relaxing. " _I am especially interested in this tale of missing payments._ "

Tron, grateful that his father was not going to badger him further, went into a full telling of the meetings. They had now had three meetings. And the more Tron had sat through them, the more annoyed he was getting with the whole situation. There was so much judgement that was being thrown his direction, and he felt the hatred of every single being. The whole tale took maybe half an hour and at long last, he was feeling drained and rather chilly.

Perhaps he should have thrown on some pants besides the robe. He felt goosebumps running up his legs. He had found himself a chair and had sat in it most of the time. He tried not to rub his legs, because how Imperial would _that_ have looked?

" _Very interesting_ ," the Emperor said. He was stroking his chin thoughtfully. " _I am most interested in the vanishing payments. You say they were made…_ "

"They were."

" _And yet they have not received them_ ," his father finished. " _I wonder where the money has gone to if not to them. Very odd indeed._ "

"Really?" Tron frowned. "I thought that you would be far more interested in the demands to cut back on our military."

" _It won't be much problem for us in the near future_ ," the man shrugged. " _We shall discuss this more in detail once you return to Byss._ "

Tron scratched next to his nose. "Byss?" he asked. "Why do I need to go to Byss?"

" _Oh, did I not mention it?_ " the Emperor asked with a slight yawn. " _I need you to return to Byss tomorrow. I realize you won't reach here until the day after but I need you to head out tomorrow at the latest._ "

"May I ask why?" the Prince asked. "I still have another two days of meetings here."

The Emperor shook his head once in a jerk. " _I cannot tell you_ ," he informed his son. " _But trust me, something big is about to happen that will influence the Empire and restore our fortunes in the galaxy. I wish you to be here when it happens_."

"I see," Tron said. His eyes glanced over his shoulder and back towards the door. He really wanted to be over this holographic call so he could return to his betrothed. He felt sufficiently recovered that he could go another round with Jan.

" _Am I boring you?_ " the Emperor sarcastically, interrupted his thoughts. " _You keep on looking away. Am I not pleasing to behold, my son? I can think of no reason to be looking away from me._ "

Tron returned to look at his father. The Emperor was looking with an imperious eyebrow raised quizzically. A smile spread across his face. It was good he was talking to his father. This was as good a time as any. He stood up, knowing this was something that required him to be standing when he said the words

"I have news for you, Father," he said. He held his arms out wide to punctuate just how amazing what he had to say was. "News that will make your entire year."

" _Oh?_ " Jagged Fel asked, sounding intrigued. " _That would be a surprise indeed_."

"Jan is pregnant!" Tron said, a great big grin covering his face. "You are going to be a grandfather!"

The Emperor said nothing, but stared with a look that was….well, Tron wasn't sure what the expression was. However, he was not ecstatic. Quiet the opposite. He was acting as if he were at a loss for words. His chest heaved up and down as if taking deep breaths to calm himself.

" _Bring Jan in here at once, I would speak with her_ ," the Emperor said. His voice was oddly devoid of all emotions as he spoke the words.

"Why?" Tron asked.

" _That was not a request_ ," Jagged Fel said, his voice deadly serious. " _Bring. Her. Now."_

He walked to the door and opening it, called down the hall. A few minutes passed before a thoroughly disheveled Jan made her way down the hallway. She looked flabbergasted, fussing with her own robe, making sure it was tight around her fine frame. Grabbing her lightly by the hand, he brought her before the Emperor. She had very rarely been in the presence of the Emperor, despite their engagement.

As soon as she was within sight of the Emperor, she blushingly looked down. " _On your knees_ ," the Emperor commanded.

Jan passed a worried look sideways at Tron. He gave a look that he hoped expressed his own bewilderment at the sharp tone of his father. Folding her arms around her midsection, Jan lowered herself to both knees and inclined her head.

" _Jan Zsinj_ ," Jagged Fel said formally. " _Speak the truth to me. Are you pregnant? Do you carry my son's child in your womb?_ "

Each word seemed to carry with it tones of both accusation and threat. Like a thunderstorm rolling in across the horizon. One that lightning could be seen but the thunder could not yet be heard. Tron put a hand on Jan's shoulder and gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"Yes, Your Majesty," she said, her voice demur. "I am indeed pregnant with your grandchild."

"Are you happy, Father?" Tron asked hesitantly. He couldn't tell for certain, but his father seemed to be losing his veneer of calm really quickly.

" _You two greedy, selfish, horny children!_ " Jagged Fel suddenly bellowed. Tron started and he felt Jan nearly jump out of her skin and let out a little squeak. " _You know how long I had to struggle to get Governor Zsinj to agree to your marriage?_ "

"I don't….." Tron began but he couldn't get a word in edgewise.

" _A full year!_ " the Emperor yelled. He pointed an accusing finger at the two of them. " _He specifically told you two not to be screwing! I've know you were screwing each other's brains out for a while now but I kept your secret. I understand the passions of the heart. But he specifically said that if she were to become pregnant before the marriage, it would be called off!_ "

"Your Majesty," Jan said, looking up nervously, "If I may…"

" _Silence!_ " he barked and with a finger, pointed for her to look down. " _Your Emperor speaks! There is no way you can become married now. You, my son, did you lose your mind? You are supposed to think with your big brain, not your little brain!_ "

"Does it really matter?" Tron asked defensively. "Her father has always wanted to have someone in the royal family….."

" _You blind, naïve fool!_ " Jagged laughed darkly. " _He wants to be_ Emperor _! He has been looking for any excuse to take his Super Star Destroyer and lead it along with nearly a third of the entire Empire against me and overthrow my rule! He was content with his daughter popping out an heir, but not an bastard. By defiling his daughter you give him the perfect pretext for civil war!_ "

"He did not defile me!" Jan said, a little more heat in her voice than was wise.

" _Next time you speak I shall give you reason to go running to your father and telling him what a monster I am!_ " Jagged Fel snapped. " _If we are lucky we can somehow salvage our alliance with him. We shall speak more of this when you return to Byss. Byss out._ "

The hologram dissolved as the call ended. Tron stood for a long moment, until the trembling shoulders of Jan brought him to his senses. He lowered himself to her level and pulled her in close as she clutched at his arm.

That had not gone as well as either had anticipated.

 **Unknown World**

Kira didn't know how long they had walked in the howling winds. Time had vanished for her. She had seen the dark form of Zekk before her and had followed him, using him like a dark beacon with which to anchor her sanity to. Had he not been there, she was certain she'd have become lost and wandering.

If only he knew where they were going. That would have not been good if he had not known. Yet before she had known, the wind began to cut down and soon, she could see. At first she thought she was going blind, but with a quick way of the hand, Zekk directed her gaze upwards. Indeed, this wasn't a blanket of snow as she had assumed.

No, this was a glacier cliff. Before her was a massive entrance that could easily have fit the Falcon inside. Which of course made her wonder why they didn't just come closer.

"Welcome to the Jedi Temple of the world Illum," Zekk said simply. "One of the most secluded parts of the galaxy."

"Never heard of it before," Kira responded.

Zekk said nothing, but marched within the entrance. Ears ringing slightly from the lack of constant blasting snow, she followed him within the massive entrance. She felt something move at her side and glancing sideways, she saw someone stepping from a hidden alcove within the ice wall. Crème colored robes fell heavily around the figure with a crème colored cowl pulled over their head. Golden symbols were sewn into long cloth strips that fell from their' shoulders and held in place around the waist by a leather belt with blocky keys hanging from it. A mask covered the persons face. A glance to the other side saw another person had fallen into step as well. Both had long cylindrical tubes in their hands.

"Who are they?" she asked Zekk. "What are those long cylinders in their hands? Are those lightsaber hilts? They're very long."

"They are, their handles are long, and they may be lightsabers," Zekk responded. "Or they are not, and those handles are not long and they are not lightsabers."

"Why can't you give me a straight answer?" she asked, throwing up her hands.

"Have I not given you straight answers?" he retorted, "Or have the answers I given been crooked?"

Kira let out a frustrated sigh that formed around a bitter laugh. No, she would get no answers from him. Darkest Knight indeed. So, she just focused on her surrounding. There was music in this, temple, as he called it. It was the music she had heard those few times. It surrounded her, and a breeze that was not born by wind tostled her hair. Her skin seemed to come alive with energy as if this place was made of a greater life force than any she had ever felt on her travels.

Small stars seemed to wink around her from every space. She followed him up several flight of stairs. As they walked, they were continually followed by the two robed figures. At each flight two more fell in behind them. All dressed in similar garb. Soon, eight robed figures were walking behind them. Holding their long lightsaber hilts at the ready. At least, she assumed they were lightsaber hilts.

No thanks to Zekk the Darkest Knight.

At the top of the last flight of stairs, two figures were standing. They were not dressed as those who followed. Yet they had robes similar to Zekk. But theirs had fur inner lining. One was a twi'lek male with his leku wrapped around his neck. The other was a human female, hair cut very short and nose piercings running up and down both sides of her nose.

"It's been a long time, Zekk," the woman said. "This time you bring a woman. Usually you bring men. Thought you were sexist."

"Open the doors," he said with a voice that didn't harbor any humor. "I will see the Masters."

"Suit yourself," the woman said and the two Jedi held out their hands towards each other.

Kira only now saw that the door was barred by two heavy blocks that crossed the door. The blocks slid sideways into the wall as if on their own accord and the double doors within slowly swung open. It made no sound, and Zekk walked in.

Kira followed him close behind, glancing back to see the robed, masked Jedi standing in formation outside the door, their masked faces looking towards her with dark green visors staring at her. Shivering, she turned and followed Zekk to about mid-point of the room.

Three men sat with legs crossed, arms held to their sides and heads low. Their eyes were closed in meditation. Zekk folded his arms into his robe sleeves and bowed to them. Holding his posture, he motioned for Kira to do the same. Slowly, she lowered herself as well, folding her arms into her winter coat sleeves as well. Yet as she did, she looked at the three men and took in every detail of them.

The one to the right was a Human of a very old age. A long with beard flowed down to his knees. He wore blue robes, and his chest, bony from age, stood bare where the plunging v-neck was not covered by his beard. His long grey hair was combed back.

The middle one was a Whiphid, if she remembered the name of the race correctly. A jutting lower jaw and protruding lower teeth that jutted upwards nearly reached his nostril slits. His white and grey hair flowed equally as a mane apart from the thick layer of fur that covered his entire body.

The last one was a human that looked the same age of Zekk. He had black hair combed in waves on either side. He wore black robes and his stubble covered his face like a shadow.

"Welcome," the middle one said after what seemed like forever of her bending and looking these men over. His voice was gruff. "What have you brought for us today, Jedi Knight Zekk?"

"A girl, Master K'Kruhk," he said.

"You are Master K'Kruhk?" Kira blurted out at the Whiphid.

"I am?" the alien said. He lifted his eyes and opened them to a yellow that was clear as any yellow she had ever seen. "You seem to know who I am."

"I saw a vision where Zekk here was talking about you to a Jedi named Ben…" she began but suddenly stopped. Was she supposed to have spoken? Or should she have waited? What especially made her stop was the sudden tension she felt from those in the room.

"You have much to say," the old human said. "Who are you?"

"I am Kira Solo," she announced herself. "I am your humble servant."

"Humble?" the old man snorted. "I highly doubt that. You claim to have seen a vision of Master K'Kruhk. Do you know who he is? Or who any of us are girl?"

"No," she mumbled, "Only the name of Master K'Kruhk."

"I am Joruus C'boath," he named himself. "And the other human is Kyp Durron. We three are the only surviving members of the Jedi High Council outside of Master Skywalker that still lives. What are you compared to us, young Kira Solo?"

"I'm just looking for my place in all of this," she replied. "Ever since I was little, something has been inside of me. And now it's awakened. Masters, I just want to know if this is how I should use these powers."

Master Kyp Durron inclined his head. "A worthy goal and ambition, young Kira," he told her. He turned his attention to Zekk. "So, you are satisfied with her abilities?"

"More then that," Zekk said. He hesitated for a while before speaking. "She is the one." The other Jedi looked at him curiously. "She is the one from the visions. I am certain of this. The one that we all saw but none of you believed."

"Impossible!" Jorrus snapped both verbally and with his long fingers. "We told you all back when you were children that it is not possible. This vision you speak of cannot be true."

"It was this vision that prompted you and your fellows to abandon the Order," Master K'Kruhk said gently chiding. "Why should we trust her if indeed she is the reason you fell away?"

Kira turned to Zekk, her eyes wide in surprise. This Jedi…..he had left the Order? And this vision, a vision of her, it had caused it? She could see the hard look on his face.

"My Masters, you know there is more to this story than just that," he replied, keeping his voice calm but Kira could almost sense a hint of annoyance. "But I am more than satisfied with this girl."

"Really?" Master C'boath sneered. "How do you believe so?"

"Because of this, my Masters," Zekk said, and reaching into his robes, the sound of something unclicking was followed by the lightsaber of Anakin Skywalker. _Her_ lightsaber.

Master K'Kruhk held out a hand with long claws. Zekk stepped forward, laid the lightsaber in the Whiphid's hand and stepped back. The Master lifted it to his eyes and squinted at it. Lowering it, he sniffed it, his nostrils flaring as he did so. His eyes closed and he let out a sigh.

"I smell the scent of the Chosen One," he said wearily. "And of Grand Master Skywalker. How came by you this, girl? And be as complete in the telling as possible."

So, once again, she described the voices. The Mount Tantis warehouse on Wayland. The vision she had experienced. The words she had heard. As she came to the conclusion of the story, the Masters were listening raptly. Master C'boath was running his fingers through his long beard. Master Durron stroked his chin with his thumb as he had the rest of the hand curled under it. And Master K'Kruhk squinted to her and snorted every once in a while.

"Are we indeed at the precipice yet again?" Master K'Kruhk asked. "Has the story not been fully told yet?"

"Whatever it is," Kyp Durron said, "I must say we must test her. Make sure she is worthy of being a Jedi."

"Agreed," Joruus said, straightening himself. "Let her return tomorrow morning and we shall see if she is what she seems to be."

K'Kruhk nodded but held out the lightsaber to Kira. "Return at first light," he instructed her. "You will return to the _Millennium Falcon_ and stay there tonight. We do not allow the uninitiated to remain within these walls overnight. Understand?"

"Yes, Master," she said, taking the lightsaber from his hand. "I shall be worthy. You shall see."

"Worthiness is like intentions," he told her, holding her own eyes with his yellow ones. "What the person may believe them to be is no more than a matter of personal perspective. And the road to the Nine Realms of Sheena are paved with them."


	15. The Twilight

**Chapter 14: The Twilight**

 ** _The Finalizer,_ Starkiller System**

"Welcome, welcome," Hux said, holding out his hand in a flourish. The room was already filled with officers, and Kylo Ren looked around at them. Perhaps the entire senior staff and top-ranking officers of the _Finalizer_ were gathered in the General's mess. He could see where two additional tables had been brought in and placed side by side to allow everyone a place to sit. "Please, Ren, take a seat."

"Thank you," he replied and headed towards his seat at the foot of the table. He'd be straight across from Hux, who had the head of the table, as was his prerogative.

Phasma sat at the right hand of Ren and as he sat down, pulling the chair back with the Force and seating himself with that, she gave him a curt nod. Kylo returned the nod, and lifting his hands, disengaged the seals to his helmet. With a hiss the vocalizer pushed forward and up, and the rest of the helmet pulled apart ever so slightly so he could slid it over his head and place at on the table, next to the first of three forks.

His mother had taught him all about proper etiquette and manners before…..before they had forced him into Luke's Academy on Ossus. Since then, there had been few enough times when formal dinners had happened that allowed him to practice that archaic skill. Yet there was something about these skills; they never seemed to be forgotten.

"I hope you all come with large appetites," the ginger-haired general said. He took his place at the head of the table. "We shall be having a three-course meal. And during this time, we shall be dropping the formalities of command. Speak freely, we shall have no need….."

"I do fear I may not be able to eat three courses, sir," a Lieutenant by the name of Dopheld Mitaka suddenly interrupted him. His voice was nervous as he did so. _Perhaps pushing if what the General said is true_ , Kylo wondered. The other officers looked uncomfortable as well. "I….I don't really eat that much, military diet and all."

The room was silent as the officers shifted uncomfortably in their seat. Phasma's soft blue eyes looked harshly at the young man. Hux himself remained silent for about a full minute, allowing the discomfort to settle in and be tangible.

"Do not feel inclined to eat more than you can, Lieutenant," he finally said, allowing a smooth smile to spread across his lips. "If you desire, you can sit or leave when you want. This is as casual an event as you will ever have onboard the _Finalizer_."

Those words and the smile broke the spell that had gripped the room and like a breeze of crisp air the entire room relaxed. The Lieutenant seemed to collapse as he realized he wasn't going to be given a verbal reprimand for speaking.

"Tonight is the last night we hide from the galaxy," Hux told them as servants came in with large decanters of alcohol and began to fill each person's goblet with the red colored liquid within. "Tomorrow, the war begins!"

"About time to if you ask me, sir," Captain Edrison Peavey, the commanding officer on the _Finalizer_ said with a hearty thump on the table. "I knew you father back when the Galactic Empire ruled the galaxy, sir. Brendal Hux would have been proud to see you about to fulfill his vision of a redominant Empire, General."

"Indeed," the General said with a toothy smile that seemed more feral than warming. "We have waited thirty years for our time, Captain. When the Galaxy Gun fires it's shot from Starkiller Base, we shall fulfill Palpatine's great wish for a 10,000 year Empire!"

"I am glad for you, General," Kylo said. The General looked at him with a look that was guarded against some insult he was about to throw. As he spoke, his goblet was filled with the liquor. "No, I mean it. Few men spend their entire lives preparing for something and then see it come to fruition. I salute you, General Hux."

He lifted his goblet to the General.

* * *

Poe Dameron walked unsteadily around the cell. Once every three days they let him walk about the cell, now that they beaten him thoroughly. It was hard to move his legs. What had he told the First Order? He wasn't even sure anymore. Had he told them the location of D'Qar? No, he was certain he hadn't.

Or had he? He honestly couldn't remember.

"You say that the Empire implanted mind-controlling chips into prisoners minds, then used them to sabotage the peace efforts of the Grand Admiral Sloane, one of the founding members of the First Order," Finn was saying to him. "That's absurd! The Empire never would have stooped to such levels of sheer insanity."

"That…that….that's how the….clones turned…tur…turned on the Jedi," Poe said. The beatings he had taken were affecting how easily he could string words and thoughts together. That alone nearly broke him from despair to see one of his greatest strengths, his ability to smooth talk, taken from him. "They impl….pl…planted bio….bio-chip in their….their brains and forc….forced them to turn on….on their generals."

"Those are clones," Finn shook his head. "Clones by their very nature aren't capable of true control over themselves. They would need those chips to help keep them focused. But to use them as some sort of mind control to turn on the Jedi? I've read Mas Amedda's _Jedi Rebellion_ and he states very clearly in chapter 17 that the clones intervened when the Jedi began to start committing terrorist actions when Mace Windu tried to assassinate the Chancellor who would become Emperor."

Poe snorted but it turned into a coughing fit. He staggered to his torture bed and placed a hand on it. Hard coughs wracked his body until he spat out small speckles of blood to the floor. To intermingle with weeks worth of filth.

"Mas Amedda is a worm," he finally said, turning to look at the stormtrooper. "He was….was….was nothing more than a…a…a lackey of a greater person. Do not….not believe him."

"I should believe you though, Poe?" Finn demanded. "Look, I'm not saying that the Empire or First Order is gentle. But strength is security."

"Yeah," Poe shook his head. "Ask the wookies how well slavery feels like security."

"The wookies were never enslaved!" Finn waved his hand dismissively. "Rebellion propaganda, that's all it was."

Poe closed his eyes. He knew, knew that Finn was a good man! He had told him how he had joined the First Order for a better life, at least, he thought that's what he had said. So much was jumbled in his mind. Especially after that dark figure had stolen memories from his mind. But he had broken through his hard exterior and was able to get him talking. If only he could make him believe him!

"I wish I….I…I could speak to my….my mother again," Poe said, changing topic. It was getting tiring trying to argue the point with Finn. Especially when he could barely string an entire sentence together.

"Your mother?" Finn asked, his voice showing how confused he was at the change of topic.

"Yeah," Poe smiled fondly. "Her name is Shara. A sm…sm…small woman but proud. She….she was kind of l….l….like the First Order. St….stern to the core. You would lie, I mean, like her. She….she….served in the Rebellion. Kn….knew Luke Skywalker."

"She knew Skywalker?" Finn asked. Poe could almost imagine his eyes growing wide. "I'd love to see Skywalker. Even if was too shoot him. His kids…."

"What happened to….to…to them?" Poe asked, for the first time remembering those charges he had been sent to rescuing. Charges he had failed in doing just that.

Finn said nothing for a long time. Poe closed his eyes. They were dead, he knew that. Or something far worse. Poor children. And it was all his fault. If he had only been faster. If he hadn't argued with the General about them. If only….

Tears flowed unbidden and unchecked from his eyes and down his cheek.

 **Resistance Headquarters, D'Qar**

The greyish skin alien stood before the Senate, delivering a fiery speech. Gar Stazi, the upcoming First Senator from Duro, cut a fine figure. The holorecording of his latest speech was filled with a strong rhetoric of the need to strengthen the military and hunt down Imperial Remnants that were not part of the Galactic Empire. His focus though was not on the First Order. No, his main concern was actually with the Eternal Empire, led by their Emperor Adol Ha, it's capitol on Bastion and boasting two thousand systems.

It was the wrong direction, but Leia was certain that he could be persuaded to turn his glowing red eyes towards the Unknown Regions. At least he wanted to vigorously pursue their enemies.

"I am glad we are getting a man who was once military into the position of First Senator," Ackbar said, sipping on some Mon Calamari whiskey. "We may just get the support we need."

"Yes," Leia replied. "That would be nice."

Gar Stazi had served for ten years in the military, leaving shortly before Leia had left the Senate to enter public service. He had been a staunch supporter of Leia's beliefs. He had risen to the rank of Captain and was quiet the charmer when he wished.

"Until that time," Winter cut in, the frail looking woman leaning in a recliner that she had brought with her. Winter had a bad back, so she needed a special type of chair when sitting. "Until that time we must observe protocols. Especially with such a weapon as the _Warhammer_ at your disposal."

"Yes, Mom," Leia replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes. Winter did so many times remind her of her adopted mother.

She turned her focus entirely on the speech. His time as First Senator couldn't arrive quickly enough. Yet she couldn't help wondering what had happened to her niece and nephew. Why hadn't Luke returned yet? Where was he hiding? Why was he hiding?

She reached out with the Force, reaching for him across the great vastness of space. Perhaps, with enough willpower, she could touch the mind of her brother. All she felt…..was a vast emptiness. Disappointed, she returned to herself and focused on what Senator Stazi was saying.

He was standing as proud as proud could be. " _We cannot sit idly by while these Imperial Remnants gain anymore strength. We need to thrust deeply into them and show them what a big stick we have!"_

Even as she heard, she could almost feel Han sitting next to her, grunting at the political show and saying, "He only wishes he could thrust deep. As for big stick, no one's got a bigger one than me!", all while having a stupid mischievous grin on his face.

Laughter started from deep in her stomach and suddenly burst out. She rocked back and forth, laughing hysterically at something that said _Han Solo_ all over it. Even as she laughed, a swell of grief rose through her and before she even knew it, tears began to pour down her cheeks.

"I didn't think that him talking about tearing Imperials a new one would be an occasion for lauging," Ackbar said.

Leia laughed even harder but choked on the tears that poured over his face unbidden and unwanted. Winter's bony hand rested on her shoulder and gave a comforting squeeze. Leia reached up, took the hand and wiped away the tears with her other. She managed to explain what she was thinking, grabbing her gut because it was starting to hurt from the laughing and crying.,

"Why? Why did Han have to…." Leia asked after finishing explaining what she had imagined. But she found herself unable to say the last word, feeling gutted as efficiently as a fish.

"There are no good answers to questions like these," Ackbar said. He shifted his weight uncomfortably in his chair. "All I do know is that we need to live so his death is not in vain."

"He speaks wisdom Leia," Winter agreed. "We can only live in a way that the dead are not ashamed that we live while they are dead."

 _If I had only trained to really be a Jedi, I may have been able to save him_ , Leia thought bitterly to herself, even though she knew full well that such thoughts didn't help. _Maybe then, I could have saved my son from him. Snoke._

Even as she thought of that, she imagined she saw Anakin and Ben as little children. Anakin with his young face waving a stick around like a lightsaber and Ben working on a model starship. Anakin was proclaiming he was going to be a Jedi like Uncle Luke and Ben complaining about Anakin being too loud.

New tears and sobs escaped her and she planted her hands firmly on her face, hiding the tears that flowed freely. She felt Ackbar's hand on one of hers and a glass that he had been drinking from pressed into her. She took it, maybe hearing Ackbar saying take a sip or not. She wasn't sure. But she drank the Mon Calamari whiskey…and promptly slumped back into the chair in a drunken sleep.

"What did you put in that drink?" Winter asked, looking with shock at how quickly Leia had been knocked out.

"Nothing!" Ackbar said, holding his hands up defensively. "Unlike human whiskey, our whiskey has three times the strength. Humans can't hold real liquor."

Loud snores came from Leia as he said that, tears still pouring down her face in her sleep.

 ** _Millennium Falcon_ , Illum**

"Master Tinube," Kira said, looking at the holographic Jedi Master.

"Young Solo," the Jedi nodded his beaked head. "What may I assist you with today? What nuggets of old Jedi wisdom can I bestow upon you?"

Kira had so many questions. So many things she wanted answers to. Chewbacca could be heard tinkering off in another part of the ship. He seemed already bored of this planet. Why not? He hadn't been allowed to accompany her to the Temple, and she felt he was not happy about that.

"Was there a High Council back during the time of the old Jedi?" she asked.

"The…kerr….Council?" the Jedi asked, blinking a few times. "Of course! They were the wisest of our Order. They had to be Masters to obtain the position. Except for Master Mundi. He was only a Knight but he had special circumstances."

"Special circumstances?" Kira asked.

"Oh yes," the little creature said. "He had to have children, so he was married to multiple women. Due to his race's gender lop-sidedness. Four females to every male."

"So, what was the special circumstances?" Kira pressed. She didn't know of any races with such an overwhelming female majority, but she wasn't surprised to learn such a race existed.

"He was married and had children," Tinube repeated.

"I know that but what was the special circumstances?" Kira asked, confused by the fact that the Jedi was repeating this Mundi's marriage status.

"His marriage _was_ the special circumstances, girl!" Tinube raised his holographic cane and waved it annoyed at her.

"Wait," she frowned, "Why was that special circumstances?"

"The Jedi Code forbids attachment," the Jedi explained. "To become attached is to allow your feelings and judgement to be clouded. No, Jedi could feel such feelings as….kerr….and loyalty, but they could not go any further. If they did, it would have resulted in them being unable to follow the will of the Force. If their lovers were captured, the Jedi could have coerced into anything. The lack of attachments allowed for them to be clear minded and focused."

She frowned at those words. She could understand the sentiment, but it seemed to shout of deprivation. Kira had loved Han Solo, and found that even in her grief, she was able to gain strength from the feelings she had towards her adopted father.

"It seems rather lonely," she decided.

"Perhaps," Tinube conceded. "But what is more fulfilling than a life given in service to the Force and greater good?"

She honestly didn't know what that would be like. Would she be forced to swear off all attachments? Never connected with anyone she loved? Denying herself the pleasure of enjoying what she felt was hers?

"What can you tell me of Anakin Skywalker?" she asked instead. She found she didn't really like the other topic all that much.

"He was a great Jedi," the Jedi said, slowly spinning the walking stick around in his hands. "He was a great general, one of our most victorious generals by the time this holocron was created. He was apprentice to Obi-wan Kenobi, who was a member of the…kerr…..Council. Beyond that, the rest has degraded with time."

Kira looked with newfound respect at the lightsaber that was laid across her lap. This Anakin Skywalker had been a great warrior. She didn't believe that war made people great, but to have been trained by a member of the old High Council, there must have been greatness in him. Even if the vision had shown darkness near the end. Had he fallen away? Become evil?

"What makes a Jedi turn their back on the Jedi?" she asked. Zekk, he had left the Jedi or so the Masters had said and what of the vision she had seen of the dark deeds of Anakin?

Tinube seemed to consider it for a second. Processing the data that remained intact. He cleared his throat at long last.

"When this holocron was created, there was only twenty Jedi that had abandoned the Order," he answered, his voice wavering. "Only one though I can recall. I never studied deeply into those that had turned dark, but the one I recall was a big deal. A thousand generations of Jedi, young one, and only twenty deserted the Order. There were those who were rejected due to infractions or their inability to gain a master. But the Twenty were those that had become Jedi Knights and Masters in their own right. The one in my day was Count Dooku of Seereno. He abandoned the Order mainly due to political beliefs. He believed the Jedi were no longer following the will of the Force but had become tools only of the Republic's government. It was he who caused the split in the Republic and it was he who initiated the Clone War."

Kira listened to the words and drank them in, wondering what lessons she could pull away from what he said.


	16. R-Day

**Chapter 15: R-Day**

 **Starkiller Base**

With heavy rapping sounds Hux walked across the hanger-bay floor. His face had a definite quality of sheer hardness. He had spent all his life fighting for the top position. The position of honor to lead the First Order. The vision of Palpatine reborn.

He could barely keep his heart from leaping out of his chest it was thundering so hard with the anticipation of what the day would bring. It was early morning, dawn having just cracked over the horizon at 05:30 Local Time. The dawn of a bright new era. One in which he would be remembered as a savior and a liberator to the galaxy. Bringing order and security to a galaxy that was fractured and divided.

A captain walked behind him, with two stormtroopers following in their wake. He would not remain on the _Finalizer_ when he altered the course of history. No, the first shot of Campaign Resurrection would be personally overseen by him.

Maintenance crews worked hard on their ships and equipment that oversaw. Hux wanted to say that they were working extra hard, knowing what would be happen this day would be immortalized in their memories. "Where were you when R-Day went down?" That would be the question they would ask themselves time and again.

A patrol of snow-troopers halted and stiffly snapped to attention, their backs ramrod straight. He nodded to them as he passed them by, heading for the turbolift. He would remember every detail of this momentous occasion.

How often did one create history and determine the rise and fall of empires?

The turbolift ride was silent, as the captain didn't seem inclined to break into his superior's reverie and the stormtroopers, well, who cared what they thought? They would speak only when spoken to. That was how it should be.

The doors to the turbolift opened to the command deck of the base. Black garbed technicians sat at their stations as grey uniformed officers prowled.

"General on deck!" the captain shouted and the officers stopped wherever they were, ramrod straight. The technicians and support staff also came to attention, swiveling in their chairs so they could stand. The white stormtroopers also came to attention.

"At ease," Hux said to them all. He strode to where the base's commander, a Colonel with a full faced beard stood. "Tell me, Colonel, what is our status? Shall we be able to deliver the great blow to the Republic?"

"Aye sir," he replied in a thick voice. "We are primed, target is locked. We await only your command."

"Very good," Hux said with an imperious nod. "Is the Supreme Leader watching this?"

"He's connected via hologram," the Colonel replied, and pointed to the back of the command deck.

Hux turned around and swallowed at the sight. The Supreme Leader sat in the back in a holographic display. His fingers were steepled before him, giving him a contemplative air. How the Supreme Leader was not making everyone cringe at the personal appearance on the deck was intriguing for the General to say the least.

He stepped with heavy strides towards the holographic image, trying to project his great confidence in the moment. That he would succeed. Perhaps it would be felt by Snoke and would make it an absolute guarantee. Hux was certain there was some scientific proof behind projection of confidence being translated to real life success.

"Supreme Leader," Hux inclined his head. "How is the signal?"

" _Strong enough_ ," Snoke replied. " _The status of the weapon is good?_ "

"Oh yes, sir," Hux answered proudly. "We are ready for your command. Say the word and we shall deliver the death stroke that will destroy our enemies!"

" _Better be_ ," Snoke said, letting his hands fall to his arm rest. " _We have spent considerable amount of funds on creating your weapon, Armitage Hux. If you do not deliver, I am afraid that the consequences will be most…displeasing to you, but you will admit they will be inventive._ "

Hux involuntarily gulped at the threat. He was certain of his inevitable success, but when the Supreme Leader spoke, one was forced to take notice. The use of his first name Armitage had been unexpected and rather unsettling.

" _I am sure you wish to deliver a fiery speech to rally our forces_ ," Snoke said, cutting into his thoughts. " _Do so. All ships and bases are connected to this momentous occasion as we speak. You shall be the one to order the shot that shall began R-Day._ "

"Thank you, Supreme Leader," Hux said, straightening and turning away from his hologram. He was self-conscious of the fact that every single First Order soldier across the entire Order was watching him. Tens of millions, tens of billions of sentients even were watching them now. No, not them. Him.

Slowly he walked towards the head of the Command Deck and looked out across the barren wastelands of snow. Mountains in the background. Heavy forests. Before the heavy forest was a large based, long barreled weapon that pointed towards the sky. Anyone who was unfamiliar with it would assume it was a tower. But no, it was far more dangerous than that. A long railroad connected to the base of the weapon, where it's devastating munitions were bullet-trained in from a factory in a nearby mountain range.

Now was the time. He cleared his throat and turned. He started slightly as he saw a massive swarm of Holonet droids lowered. These droids would connect to the vid-screen of every console within the entire First Order. All eyes were on him, and he would not disappoint.

"Thirty years ago, our beloved Emperor Palpatine was slain," he bowed his head for a moment of silence at speaking the name of the visionary of the New Order. Every soldier, tech and officer lowered their heads in reverence. "It was above the Forest Moon of Endor. He had set a trap that only through luck and last minute betrayal brought him to ruin. Luke Skywalker, that filthy Jedi destroyed Palpatine and Vader and the Empire seemed to collapse at the news of his death.

"But Palpatine was not so blind as to be unprepared. He had prepared for the eventuality of his death. From Jakku was the Contingency created. The contingency that stated that one day the fiercest and most loyal of his followers would return and purge the galaxy of the tyranny and anarchy caused by freedom. What freedom can there be without order?

"The Galactic Empire is still ruled by an Emperor, Jagged Fel. He remains strong, but how strong can he and his dwindling empire be when the New Republic tramples on the rights of those he is sworn to serve? We, you and I, together we shall go to rescue of our Imperial brothers and sisters. We shall liberate them from the terror of the New Republic.

"The New Republic's military is massive. But with the Galaxy Gun, we shall wipe away that strength! We shall open up the paths for invasion! Today is R-Day! Today is the day that the Supreme Leader has dictated will be the day we save our friends. The Supreme Leader says our shadowy existence will be cast off. The Supreme Leader is Wise."

The command deck echoed that sentiment, with every person nodding their head and saying, "The Supreme Leader is Wise." Now was to come the climax of his speech. Hux clenched his fist, for he knew that the time was now.

"No longer shall we be shadows! We shall liberate the galaxy! Bring Order to chaos! Let the war begin! Let the war begin! Let the war begin! Let the Republic fall! Fire the Galaxy Gun!"

He felt sheer adrenaline pumping through him at the vigor of his speech. He could hear the orders being given and the approving look of Snoke at his back and at his words as he turned to watch the weapon. Lights ran up the long round barrel of the weapon. Hux smiled as a massive flame of fire and smoke erupted from the barrel. He tried watching the mile long canister of the shot as it sped off into space, but he couldn't see it besides the supersonic explosion that parted clouds as it shot into space.

 **Republic _Nebula-_ Class Star Destroyer _Nebula,_ Patrolling near the Hosnian System Sun**

Captain Mifo Yo wiped his forehead as the bridge of the _Nebula_ was pointed directly towards the dwarf giant that served as the sun for the five inhabited worlds that made up the Hosnian System. He had served a good fifteen years in the armed forced of the Republic and had been comrades of Gar Stazi. It was he that had actually pulled the strings that had landed Yo the captaincy of one of fourteen _Nebula_ Star Destroyers in the Republic Navy. It wasn't a _Warhammer_ but this was the newest warships of the Republic and only secondary to the _Executor_ -Class Star Destroyers the Republic had captured back during the war and had kept up to date.

"Commander Loach," he called across the bridge that the XO. Loach was of a race that he had never learned the name. They were a secretive race that never informed outsiders of their true race name. Yet he looked like a cross between a ram and a Calamari.

"Yesh sher?" Loach responded, looking back to him with his beady eyes from the scientific station.

"How much longer are we supposed to be hovering near this sun?" he demanded. "I feel like a fish that been left in the pan too long."

"I believe the ordersh shay twelve more hoursh, sher," he responded, stroking his wispy ram-like beard.

"Gods," Yo wiped at his forehead again. "I'm returning to my quarters. You have the bridge, Comm-"

"Unidentified object just dropped out of hyperspace off our port, sir!" a navigation officer reported from his station.

How odd. No other ships were in this area besides pirates, which was why they were there in the first place. It was believed a group of pirates had set up residence near the sun to block scanners. They were there to see if they could flush them out by waiting them out.

"Can we get vishual on the object?" Commander Loach asked.

"Yes sir," an ops officer reported, "Bringing it up now."

The object in question appeared on the forward viewscreen. It was shaped like a cross, pointed at each end. It was a silvery object whatever it was but even as they saw it, it was moving at fast speed towards the sun. The signs of engines could be seen as it propelled at full-speed towards the sun.

"Can we catch it with our tractor beam?" Yo asked but before they could even responded said with a shake of his head, "Damned fools. Who drops out of hyperspace so close to a star?"

The object vanished into the heat of the star. He shrugged his shoulders. Whatever it was, and whoever was piloting it, they were dead. Maybe they had been pirates as well who had simply missed the rendezvous point.

"Get me readouts of everything about that object and let's see if we can…" he dropped off and stood to his feet as something began to happen on the surface. "What in the name of Mother of Moons is going on?"

As they watched, a massive wave of black began to spread across the surface of the star. Even as it did, consoles all across the bridge began to spark. Everything was going dark and the emergency lights began to kick on. Several of them shattered, sending a cascade of sparks down. One bridge officer yelped as he was showered in sparks and hopped away, holding his hands over his head.

"What's going on?" he shouted across the bridge. "Someone talk to me."

"All systems are going static sir," a tech called out from his station, proceeding to punch the screen of his console with his fist.

"I want damage reports from all decks," Yo ordered.

The star went completely black, plunging the ship in darkness. Then, a massive series of flashes from the star of pulsating light sent the crew reeling as they were blinded. Yo fell from his chair, holding his eyes and screaming as his cornea was burned. And with a massive wave of heat and flames, the _Nebula_ began to explode in a cascade of fire and rupturing durasteel.

* * *

Tron got to his feet, his back popping in several places. Everything was completed, the meetings were done. He would return to Byss to learn what was so special that his father had been so insistent he leave Hosnian Prime. And with him and Jan going to receive a reprimand from his father, he might as well return with having completed the assignment he had been sent here for.

"That completes this five-year review," Villichaem told him, walking up to him. "We will of course be sending observers to ensure that the decommissioning of the specified ships will take place. And that we can find exactly where those funds went."

"I can hardly wait," Tron said dryly.

"You will find us not unaccommodating towards your people," the First Senator assured him, putting a hand on the young man's shoulder. "While it may seem cruel at times, trust me, Your Highness, you shall find that everything we do is geared towards keeping the peace in the galaxy. We don't need another galactic scale war."

"No one wants that, First Senator," Tron agreed. "I wish to just return home, do my duty to my people. My father is reshaping the Empire to allow it to be firm and sturdy. A strong Empire is far better than a chaotic one."

The First Senator shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe, maybe not," he replied. "We can only hope it is true."

They exited the conference chamber into corridor outside, the two Imperial Knights looking bored as usual. At the approach of their Prince, they straightened up and fell to either side of him as two Senate Guards fell as well.

"You will stay for the Opera?" Villiecham asked. "The Alderaanian Exiles are hosting a Cultural Dance that comes from the earliest days of their planetary history."

"Forgive me, First Senator," Tron said, pulling off a believable apologetic face. "But my father has requested me to return at once to Byss."

"And why would your father need you back so soon?" his companion asked with false pleasantness. "He's not up to no good, is he?"

"Of course not," Tron replied. They were exiting the door to the landing platform. "He just needs me to return for thing related to my upcoming marriage." As he said that, a stroke of brilliance came to his mind. "You are of course invited when it happens."

The leader of the New Republic blinked several times, as if stunned by the proposal. "I shall consider…."

"First Senator!" the Chief of Staff called out and Tron's eyes saw the man. He pulled up by the side of the First Senator and whispered in his ear. Whatever was said made the man frown.

"Problems?" Tron asked, wondering at the face the alien was making.

"Nothing to worry about," he said with forced enthusiasm. "Go on ahead. Safe travels, Your Highness."

"Thank you," Prince Tron said and inclined his head at the same time Villecham did. Before his head had come up completely, the alien had turned to walk rapidly away with the Chief of Staff. Shrugging, he followed the Knights to the waiting speeder. "Let's get off this bloody world," he said as soon as he was certain they were out of earshot of anyone else.

"Agreed, My Prince," the older of the two Knights said with a vigorous nod of the head.

The sky was darkening red with every passing minute but the Prince didn't really notice. As he entered the awaiting speeder, he pulled out a PADD and started writing down in it. It was basically his defense he'd pitch when he returned back to the Imperial Palace and would face his father. He needed to get it right. He was half way through it when the screen began to hiss with static. He stared at it in alarm as it began to pop.

Just then, the speeder began to jerk. The engine began whining loudly as if it was strained. He heard the driver begin to curse in Rodian. Why any human would curse in Rodian was beyond him. It felt like a red film was across his eyes and everywhere he turned, he saw lights popping. Within seconds, speeders, hovering signs, aircraft floating platforms began to fall from the sky.

"What's going on, Yalta?" he demanded.

"I don't know," he said, gripping his saber hilt. The speeder shuddered and Tron felt his whole body tremble from the impact. The other knight was trying to call on their communicator.

"No use," he growled. People screamed around them as they plummeted to their deaths from speeders and platforms that dropped them as they tilted to their side.

Tron's heart raced and he gripped the side of the speeder. It jerked then with a loud bang, the engine died. It floated for a few seconds of its own momentum, then began to plummet. He felt a strong pair of hands grab him and hold him back in his seat as his stomach leapt into his chest. The driver cursed several more times.

"Come on!" the driver screamed. "Come on you son of a…..yes! Backup systems activated!"

The engines kicked back to life and like a slingshot it shot forward. The sudden burst of life from the engines threw them all back hard into their seats and Yalta was thrown forward, right into Tron's lap. Instead of pushing himself back, Yalta remained in place, his clean shaven, pony-tailed head mere inches from the Prince as he shielded him. A body landed hard on the side of the vehicle and rolled off so quickly that Tron couldn't even get a good look at whom it was.

A roaring sound filled his hearing, and looking up, Tron saw several massive balls of flame plummeting through the sky. He was unable to make out what exactly they were, but they were leaving a massive trail of smoke behind them.

"We got to get off this planet!" Tron blurted the obvious.

"You think?!" the older knight snapped, for a moment forgetting decorum. He had barely finished the question when the vehicle began to bob and weave, struggling to avoid falling bodies and other debris. The Prince slammed against the side of the speeder.

The large building that housed the Imperial Guest Residence came within sight and speeding towards it, a roaring sound of fire began to engulf all hearing. A few vehicles were up in the air still and he watched as one of the TIE Phantoms from his protective squad rose in the air. It began to pull away from the landing platform, only to dip forward and the tri-pronged fighter plunged in a spiraling circle down to the ground a mile below. The other ships were unable to move, and even the Royal Shuttles wings were stuck at a third opening, stuck where they had lost power.

The roaring grew louder and looking behind the speeder, Tron paled. The entire horizon was embroiled in a white fire that contrasted with the red sky. It was sweeping forward and even at this distance, he could begin to feel the heat as it rushed forward. Several loud booms echoed through the horizon as whatever had fallen from the sky, perhaps even space above crashed into the planet.

The engines on the speeder began to whine loudly and began to shudder. The platform was so close now Tron almost could imagine they could have jumped with ease. Screams from the citizens of Hosnian Prime were to a volume that nearly matched the engines that were directly below and behind the Crown Prince.

They reached the landing platform and with a heavy thud the speeder lost complete power and the engines gave out with aa loud rupture. Tron was shaken but with help he got out of the speeder and onto the landing platform. He stood there, bent over and clutching his keens for support.

"Tron! Tron!" Jan screamed his name and before he could regain control over his trembling limbs, arms swept around him in a tight embrace. The sky was so red he could not see the beautiful color of Jan's hair, nor the color of her dress. "I was so afraid you wouldn't get back here!"

"I'm alright, my love," he said, pulling back and looking down at her tear stained face.

"There is no time!" Knight Yalta said, grabbing the Prince by his upper arm. "We need to get you on the shuttle and…."

"No one's going anywhere," a voice replied and Tron looked to see the shuttle's captain walking up. "The ship is completely dead. All systems are offline. The computers are ruptured and the engines are cracked. We aren't going anywhere."

"Wait…." Yalta said angrily, "You telling me that we can't escape? That we are going to die here?"

The captain pulled off his cap and sank to the ground, falling to his knees in defeat. "Yes," he nearly chocked out. "I'm sorry, Your Highness. This is where we die."

"No!" Yalta shouted and ran off to find his sister. "Azlyn! Where are you? Azlyn!"

Tron was stunned at the words. He felt the older Knight slump as if he were about to collapse. He was….he was going to die. He was never going to see his child born. His love, the woman who was going to be his wife, was going to die. He was never going to see his father the Emperor again. His father!

"Can I at least call the Emperor?" Tron asked, afraid of the reply.

The Captain couldn't even say the words as he shook his head. A strange, calm acceptance fell over Tron. It was weird, yet somehow he felt free, the knowledge that there was no longer to be any burdens for him to carry. That he and Jan would be together in death was comforting. How often did one die in the arms of their lover at the same time?

"Well Jan," he said, "Let's sit and watch the fires. We've never just sat and seen the sunrise, so let's see the sunset on this world and our lives."

She nodded, her body shuddering from sobs. With arm around her shoulder, he guided her to the edge of the platform and lowered himself to a sitting position. He let his legs dangle over the edge of the platform and she did as well. There they sat as the fires that scoured the world surged forwards towards them. There they sat, no words exchanged as she rested her head on his shoulder and his head on hers.

They were still there, her arm around his waist. His arm around her shoulder. And their hands clutching each other when the fire hit them.


	17. The Mandate

**Chapter 16: The Mandate**

 **Resistance Base, D'Qar**

Leia sat around the table, listening to the reports. Reports of unusual activity within the First Orders borders, the status of all their ships, the newest supply lines. Yet even as she sat there, a pain was in her chest. She reached up to massage her chest, the pain a strong ache. It was like stabbing heartburn but as she rubbed it, she kept as best a face as she could.

"Are you alright?" Admiral Statura asked from next to her. His slanted eyes showed his concern.

"I'm fine," she assured him, "Something I ate doesn't agree with me."

That wasn't the case, but how was she to describe this feeling to her colleague? She could barely explain it to herself. She felt it was connected to the Force. Luke had once told her that all beings in the universe share a common thread that bound all life together.

If only Luke was there to help against the darkness, she thought ruefully to herself.

As she sat there pondering, a massive signal suddenly appeared before them. There was a holoprojector in center of the table, and suddenly a massive symbol of a polygon with a circle of sharp spikes driving inwards. She knew that symbol and her mouth dropped open.

"The First Order," she breathed but before she could even finish the words, another voice, deep and guttural began speaking.

" _I am Supreme Leader Snoke of the First Order_ ," the voice boomed. Leia felt a shiver running up her spine. Her mind raced to a time when she had run into her child's bedroom, Ben screaming about the "Dark Man" the one he called "Snoke" was watching him. She had never believed him…..until it was too late. Now hearing the dreaded voice of the one who had seduced her son to the Dark Side, made her feel slimy. " _My First Order has hidden long enough from the galaxy. Your precious capitol world of Hosnian System has been destroyed. All life wiped from it. Three billion souls extinguished and even now I send a fleet to lay claim to it for the First Order_."

"Where is this signal coming from?" Ackbar demanded, rising to his feet. "Trace the call back to i's source!"

Leia felt even more dread fill her. She didn't need to have someone confirm anything to her. She knew that the pain she had felt was the souls of three billion being wiped away. The First Order had declared war with a most savage of blows.

Most of the officers shifted uncomfortably. Unable to decide if what they were hearing and seeing was real or fake. But it was obvious that this was a general one-way broadcast and not directed to them exclusively.

" _Every two hours we shall destroy another target_ ," Snoke continued with triumph in his voice with the greatest malice laced in. " _Billions more will die by our hand. We have the means to wipe out the entire New Republic in less than two weeks. But if you wish to surrender, I am willing to discuss terms. Send your highest ranking surviving dignitary to the closest occupation fleet and I will be willing to discuss terms. The New Republic has ended, and Palpatine's grand vision will be restored_."

With that the communication ended. Leia stared at the table, stunned by the news. Hosnian Prime was gone? How could this have happened? She had known for so long that the First Order was a threat. But…..this powerful? The Senate was gone? Villiecham was dead? The First, Second and Third Fleets were wiped from existence? That was fifteen percent of their entire military simply wiped out in a single blow!

"Get me High Command on Hosnian Prime immediately!" Ackbar barked through a comm-panel to the communications division in another part of the base. "I will have the truth of this at once!"

But she didn't need to have the words affirmed that Snoke had said. She could feel a great emptiness as if a hole were in the Force where once life had thrived. It was like Alderaan once again. A great devastation that made no sense in the scale of the slaughter.

As she sat, lost in thought, a new symbol suddenly sprang to life. It was the Vice Supreme Commander of the New Republic's Military forces. A woman in her mid-thirties, Vice Supreme Commander Darla Thorne was the second-in-command of the entire New Republic military.

" _All military units of the New Republic_ ," she said, her voice shaken clearly by something no one could see but all could guess. " _We are initiating Condition Scarif. I say again, we are Initiating Condition Scarif. Keep in contact on your designated frequencies. Thorne out_."

Condition Scarif. The Republic's War Footing. Leia sank her head into her hands. Why had no one listened to her? Now, it was too late.

 **Jedi Temple, Ilum**

Away from the outbreak of war, Kira stood before the Masters. The three men drilled into her with their eyes, seeming to strip away everything from her and leaving her naked to their knowing gazes. Every single thought seemed bare to them and she grabbed on of her arms and rubbed the goosebumps that prickled over her arms.

"In the days of the Old Order," K'Kruhk said to her, "We would test padawans abilities to see what could not be seen by the Force. With this device, I shall bring up images. You will not see the pictures, but if you are strong with the Force, you will see the images in your mind as clearly as if you could see them with your eyes."

In his clawed hand was a PADD. With a small click on the device, Kira could hear it turn on. Steamy air escaped her mouth as she breathed out. She remembered the lessons of the Jedi Master Tinube and kept her mind clear and calm, reaching out with her feelings.

"Begin," the Jedi Master instructed.

Kira reached out. Nothing came though. Her mind was blank. Shouldn't it have come automatically? She reached out with her feelings in all directions, feeling something akin to sparkling energy as she brushed against each life forms. She could feel the calm reserve of Master K'Kruhk, the imperious impatience of Master C'boath and the interest of Master Durron.

Those feeling were so clear. Why could not the images be that simply? Why would it not come though? The images that were there? Surely they should be….

 _Focus on the task._ It was that voice! The voice of Anakin Skywalker. He had been silent for so long that she nearly started at hearing his voice.

However, she trusted him, and focused her feelings on the device in the hands of the Master. As she did, focusing all her energy on that single point, the device seemed to dissolve before her eyes, leaving only a solitary image.

"A cup!" she exclaimed triumphantly. "A twin handled cup!"

The Whiphid master touched a side button and the image changed. "A bird!" Another change. "A ship!" A different image. "Another cup!" Through twenty images she went through, and each time she saw the image correctly, excitement grew in her. She saw an approving smile on the middle master's face and the other masters looked on her with intrigue.

"Impressive," Master Durron said. "I've never seen anyone get every image correct that wasn't a master. You did struggle at first, but its impressive none-the-less."

"Not as impressive as the lightsaber of the Chosen One," Master C'boath pronounced, waving a hand as if to dismiss his fellow master's point. "Tell me about how you came to it and everything that occurred when you gained it."

So yet again she went through retelling the tale. When she told about the visions she had gained when she had touched it, Master K'Kruhk straightened in his seat. His eyes, already narrowed, narrowed almost to slits. When she finished, the old Jedi Master slowly nodded his head.

"You seem to have a very advanced form of psychometric abilities," he said. "Psychometric is a power by which the Force user can see the history of an object. It is extremely rare and very few that I have known in my long life have this gift. And one in particular could only see it's history within a day at most."

"If she indeed has this power," C'boath said doubtfully, "Then let us test it. Tell us what you see when you hold this."

Reaching into his beard, Kira watched with surprise as he withdrew a medallion. It had a single gem on a metallic frame and a long thin wire attached it to the main necklace. He inclined his head so he could easily slid the necklace over his head and tossed it to her. Deftly she caught it from years of practice with Han Solo and she at once plunged into the now all too familiar visionscape.

 _She stood in front of a glass wall. Through it, she could see long glass pillars that rose high above them. The pillars were surrounded by rings that had small glass bubbles with tiny black specks within that rotated around the pillars. Turning her head, she saw Master C'boath standing next to her, stroking his beard as he looked deep in thought._

 _"Master C'boath," a baritone voice said. She felt a weird sensation as the speaker walked right through her. She took a step back, only to see the massive back of an alien. She didn't know the race but as she looked at him, she noticed the massive set of arms on him. Four arms to be exact._

 _"Master Krell," C'boath said. His voice was far more pleasant then Kira had ever heard it. "I am glad you could join me. I know you don't approve of clones."_

 _"They aren't natural to the Force," this Jedi named Krell said, shaking his head. "If you ever try to feel them through the Force, they are like static. Chaos. I feel you are making a mistake, my old friend. But I am here to support you."_

 _"How very nice of you," C'boath said jokingly, then his voice became more serious. "Are you sure your path is the right one, Pong? There are other ways of doing-"_

 _"No," Master Krell (was his name Pong Krell or was it Krell Pong) said firmly. "I have thought about it. Dooku is not the true power pulling the strings. He has a master. Perhaps this Darth Sidious we've heard rumors about. I have seen that only one close to him will destroy him."_

 _"If they catch wind before you manage to infiltrate the Sith, you will be branded a traitor," C'boath said to him. He turned to look at the other Jedi Master, as Kira noticed how much more tame his beard was. The medallion hung from his neck. "At the very least you will be imprisoned. At worst, you will be executed."_

 _"It is a risk worth taking if I can find and destroy this Sith before his new power destroys the Jedi and everything we hold dear," Master Krell said, no hint of hesitation in his voice. "Besides, my plan doesn't involve a cloned Jedi. How can you ensure it will not become insane?"_

 _"If my studies of Force alchemy were correct, then the spells I've placed in this medallion should be able to keep the insanity at bay once he wears it," C'boath explained, motioning to the medallion around his neck. "You have seen visions of this Sith and his new order. I have seen a greater threat from the Unknown Regions. We still have heard nothing from the Jedi team we sent to explore those parts of space. We must have as many Jedi as we can to turn back this evil."_

 _The two Jedi fell silent. Honestly, Kira really wasn't versed enough in the time of the Clone Wars to understand what they were talking about. She felt this was the Clone Wars, because of their talking of Dooku and Master Tinube's holocron talking about it. Even as she stood there, a long-necked alien walked up to them and with a flowing gesture, they moved down the hall._

 _"I am intrigued at your request, Master Jedi," the alien was saying, her voice diminishing as they walked away from her. "Never have we had a Jedi who desires a clone for themselves."_

 _The Jedi's reply was quiet, they were too far away to make clear. She began to follow them…._

And snapped out of the vision. She took a few steadying breaths as she felt the others looking at her. These visions were all so uniquely different. Some were here being a ghostly shadow. Some were from her own point of view, as if she were the one talking. Others were so fast and choppy that she had no idea what she was seeing.

"Indeed, you do see the past of an item," Master C'boath replied. "You saw my host before he gave me life."

"You?" Kira asked, rubbing her head. She felt a headache coming on. "You are the clone?"

The words were harsh. Her throat was sore and dry. She must have indeed been talking a long time to have dried out her throat. Sucking her cheeks in and out, she tried to generate saliva to moisten her mouth.

"Yes," C'boath nodded his head. "Master C'boath never returned from the Unknown Regions, he never saw me be born. I didn't emerge from my cloning chamber until after the war had been lost and the Jedi Purge had taken effect. Master Skywalker would find me, hiding in the Outer Rim and it was he who brought me to the Jedi Order. But, unlike most Jedi, I had been flashed. All of my hosts skills and powers were automatically mine to control. But I couldn't face an entire Empire by myself."

A great weight of sadness was in his voice, and for once she didn't feel intimidated by the Master. No, she saw him as a tragic figure. Created for a purpose only for the creator to not be around to see it grow. Bitterness filled her as she knew all too well the feelings of abandonment.

"You are angry, Young Solo," Master Durron said, "Why?"

"I'm not…" Kira began to protest but Master K'Kruhk held up a hand to silence her.

"We can see through you," the ancient Jedi reminded her. "You are bitter. You feel lost, abandoned by those who should have protected you. Even your adopted father you feel angry towards."

She thought about arguing the point with the Jedi. Yet he'd know she was lying. They all would. Damn the Force and it's ability to read minds!

"I'm not angry with him," she shook her head. "I'm angry with myself."

"Why?"

"Because I don't feel like bursting into tears every minute because he is dead!" she snapped angrily. "I know I should feel sad for his death, but beyond a single cry, I don't feel anything! I should have raged about his death! I should have sought vengeance for his death."

"It is natural to feel a need to avenge the fallen if we were close to them," Durron said. "But beware them! The Dark Side lies in vengeance. With our powers, we could do terrible deeds. Vader, Sidious….they all gave into the need for vengeance and it cost the galaxy dearly. That's why it is not good to give into these emotions."

Kira crossed her arms before her and lowered her head. She knew that they were right. Yet it still made it hard to accept it. She felt frustrated by this seeming restraint upon what she could and couldn't do to honor the man that had raised her. But her father, Han Solo, would never have wanted her to squander her talents on revenge. There was no gain in it.

"How do I control it?" she finally asked. "How do I control these desires and get rid of them?"

"Through meditation," C'boath said. "You will mediate with us and we shall discover where your future leads you. Whether down darkness or to light."

She let herself agree. She would meditate with them. She wanted to be a Jedi, if only to prove Han proud.

 **Resistance Base, D'Qar**

"What is the word, General?" Ackbar asked.

Crix Madine should have retired at least a decade ago. He now looked like General Dodonna did at Yavin IV. His once sandy colored hair had turned grey and his beard stretched out a good distance past his chin. He wasn't the strapping man that had devised the plans for the Endor excursion, but he was still a solid choice to lead the Republic's military in the Outer Rim.

"It's bad, Gail," Madine said, calling Ackbar by his first name. "The entire Hosnian System was indeed wiped out. An estimated eighty-percent of the entire New Republic government was on the planet. No one escaped as far as we can tell. What's worse is that the First Order has jumped in a sizable fleet into the system. Thorne has decided we aren't going to fight for the system yet until we have a counter-offensive planned."

That wasn't decisive, but rather indecisive, Leia mentally shuddered. "Who's in charge of the Republic then?" Leia asked. She was fearful of what the answer would be.

"Gar Stazi has been immediately sworn into office of the First Senator," Madine replied. "He was visiting Fondor for an inspection tour. Thank the stars he wasn't near that catastrophe."

Thank the Force! Leia was forced to grab the side of the conference table to prevent herself from collapsing with relief. They wouldn't devolve into a fragmented government, with factions fighting for control. Gar Stazi was a fighter, and as soon as he got his head wrapped around the situation, they would take the fight to the First Order!

"We need to move fast if we are to find this weapon. If it indeed is to be fired again every two hours, that time is all but up," Madine said. Then he hesitantly said, "Unless you think this is a one-shot wonder."

He had been foremost in the military that argued against Leia's belief in the threat of the First Order. He had been certain like so many others that the Galactic Empire, no matter how small it had shrunk, was the real threat. Yet now he was forced to come to her, figurative hat in hand, to beg her forgiveness for doubting her.

Honestly, she'd rather be doubted and yet everyone be alive. Anything other than this mess.

"I really wish that I could say for certain, General," Leia shook her head and sighed. "I'm just….."

The image of Madine vanished to be replaced by a newer image. That hated First Order symbol. Leia felt dread filling her and hoped against hope that this Snoke wouldn't say what he was about to say. There were thousands of worlds in the New Republic they could hit, and even unimportant ones would be a loss beyond measure.

"Your two hours are up," he proclaimed. "You have not taken our threat seriously. As such, we have just destroyed the Chandrilan System. You have an additional two hours to surrender, or we will target another system. Choose wisely and save your citizens a horrific death."

Leia felt sick to her stomach. It took everything to remain standing. The Chandrilan system had seven occupied worlds, twenty-six moons and had one of the political academies of the Republic. The holographic symbol of the First Order vanished and in it's place was Madine. He looked ashen even in the holographic footage.

"No…." he said as if it was a breath of air instead of a word. "There was a mandatory conference on Chandrila. Most of those who survived Hosnian Prime…"

He couldn't finish the words but Leia understood to growing horror. The conference had been a government one and any officials not on Hosnian Prime would mostly have been gathered there. There would be few government officials now that were still alive.

 ** _Finalizer,_ Starkiller System**

Sam had missed the first shot of the war. He had been doing swimming exercises with the rest of his squad in the aquatic pool onboard the ship. He had been so eager to see what would happen. There had been so much excited chatter among the rest of the Division that had seen the first blow against the hated Republic.

He had stood and watched the next blow. Cloaked drones were parked at the very edge of the Chandrialan Solar System to escape detection. He had been excited when he saw the singular system star going nova. But then…the solars flares had hit the planets. The footage saw each moon and planet burning up like stars of their own. Some of the moons were propelled by the force of the solar flares into a spiral towards the planets below.

"How many are in that system, sir?" he asked the company sergeant who proudly stood like a bird during mating season.

"Somewhere in the vicinity of two and half billion, FN-2187!" the sergeant slapped him hard on his armored shoulder. "Dead Republic filth, all of them!"

Sam felt the blood draining from his face and was glad that the officer wasn't seeing that. As he watched the death of billions of innocents, because surely they were all evil tyrants, words rose unbidden to his mind. Scarif, Alderaan, Kasssyhk, Jedha…all planets the Empire had destroyed. Horror filled Sam as he realized that the Republic pilot had been telling the truth!

 _What have I done?_

* * *

Another person saw the death of another system. His gloved hand raised in a fist to about the mid-level of his chest, triumphant over the death of yet another Republic system. It fueled his desire for death and destruction on those who had wronged him, not slating it in the slightest.

How many times had Kylo's mother abandoned him and Anakin on Corellia so she could run away to Chandrila for a political function? How many times had that government taken priority in her life over her family? Kylo Ren hoped against hope that his mother was watching this and despairing as her beloved Republic was picked apart piece by piece.

"Well Ren," Hux said with a smug arrogant smile gracing his pinched face, "What do you think _now_? Twice now my weapon has struck at the heart of our enemies."

"Yes," Kylo shrugged. "It is very impressive. Not as impressive as the Force."

Hux snorted in derision. "Ah yes. The _Force._ An archaic magic that graces a few individuals with abilities and a sense of importance that their station in life that nature had never intended for them."

Kylo bit his lower lip, glad the mask of his helmet covered his face and hid the annoyance that rose in him. He was about to respond in a calm tone when suddenly he saw something before him. On the bridge of the Star Destroyer they stood on a young woman appeared, kneeling with his hands resting on her knees, clearly in meditation. He took a step forward and slowly reached out.

"Who are you?" he asked the kneeling woman. "How did you get here?"

"Who is who?" Hux asked, "What are you talking about man?"

"Do you not see the girl?" Ren demanded, turning to look at Hux. "She is kneeling right there!"

Officers around the bridge were turning to look at the spot that Kylo Ren spoke of and they looked confused. Hux frowned and put a hand on the other man's shoulder. There was a sound of pity in the man's voice.

"I think you have been working too hard Ren," he said with exaggerated concern. "You may need a rest."

"Do you not see her?" Ren demanded, throwing off the hand of the General harshly.

"See _who_?" Hux asked again. "There is no one there!"

Ren turned to the young girl and she raised her face to him. It was the girl! His adopted sister. The girl of the visions! She looked up at him with a confused expression. She was wearing a heavy winter coat. Han Solo's, he recognized with a flash of recognition.

" _Who are you?"_ the girl asked. " _I haven't seen you before_. _What's your name?_ " Her voice was hollowed as if she were speaking at the end of a corridor to him.

"My name is…" he began. But he stopped himself from saying his name. She didn't recognize him? How was that possible? She had been there when he had….murdered Han Solo. Then a flash of remembrance hit him. What had he seen in her memories? "We have never met before, but I am your brother. Our parents abandoned you on Jakku and I have been looking for you. You are Kira, correct?"

" _Really?_ " she asked, her eyes wide with sudden surprise and guarded excitement. " _I mean….yes, I'm Kira. I was adopted by a good people. I…..are we really siblings?_ "

"Yes," he assured her. It really wasn't a lie after all. "Look, I want to see you to find you. I'm….I'm not on the same planet as you are."

" _That's impossible!"_ Kira laughed. " _You are standing right before me!_ "

"We are both strong in the Force," he explained to her. "There is massive death in the galaxy. When this happens, we can see those close to us. Where are you, I will come to you! I can show you the ways of the Force."

" _But there are members of the Jedi High Council here_ ," she said, confused. " _Masters!_ _Please brother, what is your name?_ "

Masters? Members of the Jedi High Council! By the Emperor's black bones, he could deal such a savage blow to the Jedi Order that would shatter what little organization was left. He could hear Hux repeating his question of what and who he was talking to. But Kylo Ren had no time for such thing.

"That's not important, I can still help you where the Masters can't," he told her urgently. "Familial bonds are the strongest an can hasten your training. Where are you?"

" _I'm on Illum…_.." and the girl vanished before him.

Triumph filled him. Hux and the rest of the bridge crew looked at him awkwardly, unsure of what to make of what just happened. He spun on his heel and began to march off the bridge. If he could hurry, he could catch them off guard.

"Have the Chrome Dome Division deploy all forces immediately towards the planet Illum," he ordered a communications officers, "Tell Captain Phasma I will be joining here there."

"Illum?" Hux shouted after him, "Damn you, Ren! We have a war to wage. You just can't run off, you stupid mystic….."

"My mandate is to hunt down Jedi scum," Kylo Ren retorted over his shoulder. "You will be glad that I have taken as many Jedi as I could off the board when you finally decide to stoop playing it safe and get dirty…."

He didn't hear the footsteps. But he felt the hand that grabbed his shoulder and jerked him to a stop. Anger simmered in Kylo as he looked at the general who was glaring at him.

"You would disobey our Supreme Leader?" Hux snarled, spittle flying from his mouth and landing on Kylo's mask. "This is a new low, even for you, Ren. Our orders are very clear. We are to protect the weapon _. My weapon!_ I have spent a lifetime preparing for this moment. You will not run off as I show you that I indeed am the better men….."

Hux suddenly jumped back, his hand curling into a fist. Strained pain crossed his face. Kylo held his hand before the General's face and using the Force, he forced Hux slowly but ever so surely to his knees. Hux held his silence, strangled growls escaping between curled lips.

"You are a small man, destroying systems without having to do the deed yourself," Kylo growled. He had lost patience with his mewling like a baby nexu cat. "You are not better me, I do not sit around and let others do what I can do myself. You think your monstrosity gives you power? You stand on the backs of everyone who has propped you up and given you this moment in the sun. I know where Jedi are, and I will destroy them with my own hands. When you are nothing more than aa footnote in the history of this time, I shall stand as a giant."

With that Kylo let go of the Force hold he had on the general. Hux collapsed onto his back, and several officers rushed to his side. Hatred simmered in Hux's face, black rage at the humiliation as he glared at Kylo. With a swirl of his black cloak, he continued his march off the bridge, leaving a simmering ginger general behind him.

* * *

The door to the cell opened and Sam walked into the room. The guard looked bored, even in his armor and helmet you could tell a bored trooper. The trooper looked towards him, straightening only enough to act like he was paying attention.

"Orders from up top," Sam informed the trooper. His designation was FN-992, a member of one of the first battalions within Chrome Dome Division. "Everyone was deploying off the ship. You're to report to your squad and prepare for departure."

"Whose reliving me, FN-2187?" the trooper asked with only the mildest of interest.

"Someone from Security," Sam informed him. The trooper hesitated. "Don't worry, they said he would be fine for a little while by himself. Unless you weakened his restraints."

"And incur the wrath of Jedi Killer?" FN-992 laughed as if it was the worst kind of joke. "Alrighty then."

He marched out of the cell and Sam waited until the door slid shut behind him. As soon as it was closed, he hurried to the side of the restrained Poe. He quickly undid the restraints. The last restraint the held his head in place snapped open and the Republic pilot collapsed forward.

"Is that you, Finn?" Poe asked. His speech was a little better today. The medical techs must have given him something to heal his body a bit. No one wanted a prisoner to die before they revealed everything.

"There isn't time, Dameron," he said, putting his hand on the man's shoulder. "Look, as soon as I leave, wait roughly ten minutes. By then most of the Star Destroyer should be empty of troopers. I'll leave the door unlocked. Turn right and head down to the turbolift. It will send you to the hangerbay on Deck 17."

"What?" Poe asked, confused.

"Deck 17," Sam repeated. "You got that?"

"I got the Deck 17 but what are you talking about?" Poe shook his head.

Sam rolled his eyes. "Haven't you ever seen a prison break before?" he demanded.

"Why are you helping me?" Poe asked. His eyes locked on Sam's visor. "Are you defecting?"

"No!" Sam shook his head. "Why would I defect to a Republic that's just about to fall?"

"Then why are you helping?" Poe asked again.

Sam took a deep breath. "Because the stories you told me…..they're all true," he said, standing and heading to the door. He reached out his hand to push the button to open the door. Sam stared at the button and found himself unable to leave without saying one thing more. "I believe in the First Order, Poe. I really do. But I can't condone the destruction of so many lives without doing at least one thing good."

An awkward silence hung between them. Sam did believe in the First Order. The camaraderie, the sense of belonging, the order and stability it brought. It was so much more than the backwater monotone planet he had grown up on. Yet he also had a conscience. It couldn't abide the carnage that was happening.

"Come with me," Poe said, cutting through the thick silence. He was now on his feet, shakily making his way over to Sam's side. "You can continue to do something good by joining us."

Sam laughed hollowly. "I can't," he said.

"If you decide to do something else good," Poe said, his voice sad but understanding. "Contact me on Channel 9-Alpha-Black-7. It'll send your transmission straight to me."

Sam didn't say anything, but pushing open the door, he headed into the corridor outside, gripping his blaster rifle tightly. What he may have just done was treasonous, but it felt right.


	18. Revealed Locations

_Authors Note: I apologize for the long time between these last two chapters. I was trying to finish up two of my original stories for self-publication. If you want to know about those books, PM me. I will finish this story, as there's only a few chapters left before we reach the end of the superior version of_ **The Force Awakens!**

 **Chapter 17: Revealed Locations**

 **Unknown Planet, Outer-Rim**

There was a great disturbance in the Force.

The lone figure stood at the bottom of a deep cylindrical chamber. Above him stood two squat figures, looking like frogs who better belonged on lily-pads than upright, wearing monotone sand-colored robes. Raising his hands, he covered his head with a lifted the cowl that had hung over his head and removed it. Small narrow windows allowed columns of soft light to stream down to his face, like bars of light passing between cell-bars.

Raising a hand, he clenched it into a fist. He did not need to look up at the figures. He did not need to see what they were doing. He knew that they were raising their hands and gripping a ancient lever that had long ago had the wood rotten away, leaving only the metallic frame that out-lined what had once been.

The opening of three slab-door could be heard. The first was of wood, directly above his face. The second was of stone, facing the back of his right shoulder at an angle. The third was of ancient metal, facing his left shoulder at an angle. From these began to fall a perfect mix of black and white sand.

He braced himself and was able to easily withstand the multiple assault upon his person. The sand poured off his body and to the floor, where it began to spread outwards, heading for the corners of the cylindrical chamber. It was roughly 1.5 meters across in all directions, with him at the exact center. The and flowed through his beard and hair, long unkempt.

Within minutes the sand was ankle deep, and had he kept his eyes open, he would have seen the black and white sand combining around him to create grey. Yet he did not, plunging himself deep into the Force. Here alone he was safe to use the full extent of his power, a power that was so great he feared it was the reason he had been forsaken by those he trusted.

The two figures remained standing by the lever. They would not leave, even though he did not need them to stay. It was their sacred duty to protect him from death. This was not on his mind at all. He reached out, trying to find the disturbance in the Force.

The galaxy was in chaos. Everywhere he looked, death stared at him. It surrounded him. It nearly brought him to his knees, the sheer magnitude of such destruction. It might have happened, his collapsing to his knees as the voices of the dead screamed in terror. But the sand was now at the mid-point of his calves, and the force of the falling sand held him upright as well.

He reached out, brushing the minds of all those he counted as allies. There were so few. His heart broke to feel so few. But then…who was that? He sensed it, brighter than any flame in the galaxy he had ever felt. It was being fed, fed by direct contact with….. _him!_

The sand was up to his hips, and he could see clearly. Yes…yes! Hope was not yet lost. Holding up his hand, he projected a Force bubble that suspended the sand in midair over his head. The two figures closed the door just as quickly as they had opened them, and a few seconds later, sand began to pour out of holes in the ground, draining around his body. Usually, he would have been in there until he was completely covered, diving deep into the Force and using it to recycle the oxygen within his own body.

His blue eyes opened and knew it was time.

 **D'Qar, Resistance Headquarters**

Kare Kun-Wexley eased up on the flight stick. She had needed to escape the clutter of the base and had found it oppressively compact in there. Especially since…tears welled up in her eyes and she gripped the flight stick as hard as she could. Her twin-piloted X-Wing accidentally bobbed downwards and a cry from her gunner snapped her back to full awareness.

"Sorry," Kare replied, leveling out the X-Wing. "I'm just…."

"I understand," the round-faced human woman Jessika Pava replied. "Look, if you want, redirect flight controls back to me and I can…."

"No!" Kare said, a little too snappishly.

Pava was just as gifted a pilot as any the Resistance had to offer. Their six-fighter squadron of double-crewed X-Wings didn't find much better than the other woman. But Kare needed the time to focus on something that didn't include her dead husband. General Leia herself had delivered the news after learning about it.

It hadn't made it any easier to bare. Kare took as many patrols as she could, especially since they were now on a war-footing with the First Order. It kept her mind occupied and off Timmin. It was so hard thpugh! Especially today, which was their one-year anniversary.

 _You big idiot! Why did you go and kill yourself and leave me alone?_ She asked herself angrily. Tears streamed down her cheeks and reaching up, wiped them away.

"If you ever want to talk," Pava said, "Just let me know. You aren't alone in this world. You have me."

Kare felt Pava put a hand on her shoulder, giving her a comforting squeeze. She looked at the hand and then turned to face the other woman, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Yeah," Kare snorted. "I've seen the way you look at me, Jess. Now that Timmin is gone, you're hoping that I will drop my pants for you. Is that what's going on? Trying to use this chance to seduce me?!"

"No," Pava let go and pulled back her hand. She looked hurt by the accusations. "I just want to be your friend right now! You know I lost my own wife four years ago, and you were there to help me out. That's just what I'm wanting to do in return!"

Kare could see the sincerity in her eyes. She turned away, staring hard at the stars. Maybe Pava only wanted to be a friend. But she had also heard her rantings when she thought no one could listen. Pava had also once forced herself on Kare when the other was drunk. Luckily, she wasn't that strong and had been easily rebuffed.

But…..that didn't mean that Pava didn't have her heart in the right place. Closing her eyes, cursing herself and the galaxy for making her life so terrible, took a deep breath.

"Look, Jess….." she began but the other woman cut her off.

"Unidentified ship just dropped out of hyperspace, Black Three," the other woman cut her off. Her voice was harsh, clearly in no mood to hear an apology from Kare. She never used call-signs unless she was pissed at someone.

Kare would have to find a way to apologize later. She looked at her scanner and saw a single blip on the far upper side of the asteroid ring that circled D'Qar. She tilted her fighter towards the ship and hit her accelerator, speeding at full-impulse towards the dot, which was too far away to see with her naked eye.

The massive bowl-shaped _Warhammer_ -Assault Dreadnought loomed to the right of them as they speed onwards. Beyond the conical front, a long rectangular rear section housed the massive thrusters required to push the behemoth. It could make hyper-space, which was good for battles. It would certainly see action in this war.

"Got a lock on the bogie?" she asked Pava.

"The asteroids are blocking any lock," Pava replied. "You'll need to get above the ring, Black Three."

"Unidentified vessel," Kare called over an open channel that was aimed towards the ship. It was still too far to see but the scanners were showing they were getting close. "You have entered restricted New Republic military space. Declare your intentions now or we will be forced to use deadly force."

As she finished the words the X-Wing cleared the top of the asteroid belt's edge. Banking sharply to the left, she sped forward. Now she could see it with her own eyes. A small speck that was growing larger. She also spotted another dot, green to show friendly coming up from the planet. She was within a thousand kilometers now and couldn't make out anything more than the shape of it.

"I have a lock, Black Three," Pava replied. "Holding strong."

"Unidentified vessel," Kare again hailed the other ship. "This is Kare Kun-Wexley of the New Republic military. I order you to declare yourself and your intentions, or else I will blow you out of the sky."

 _"Unidentified vessel,"_ another voice said. The universal translator typed out his words on the screen. " _This is Commander Nien Nub of the New Republic military. You have already been given two warnings. This is your last chance to save yourself or else you will be shot out of the sky."_

" _Is….is that any…anyway to addr….ess your co..co…commanding officer, Nien Nub_?" a voice that made her heart leap out of her chest said. " _As for yo…you Kare, I kn….know you are gu….gunning for a pro….promotion, but this….this is ri….ridiculous_."

"Commander Dameron!"

* * *

"Are you absolutely sure?" Leia asked, standing next to the bio-bed that Poe was laid across. He was naked except for military briefs that had been given him. A medical droid worked on him, plunging needles and injecting meds into him. "That's almost half a galaxy away and you say that you only took less than an hour and a half to get here?"

"Ab….absolutely, Ge…general," Poe stammered.

It was hard for Leia to see the Commander in such a battered condition. He was much like Han had been when he had been that age. Confident, full of swagger and the smoothest talker you ever met. To see him so battered, bruised, torn…..it was a crime against such a vibrant young man.

"If that's true then the First Order has superior hyperdrives," Leia shuddered. "It will take us three and a half hours to get there. We'll lose another system during that time. Thank you for telling me this information though."

"I….I want to le…lead the assault," Poe said, pushing himself up.

"Absolutely not!" Leia snapped, waving a finger at him. The droid grabbed him firmly and laid him on the table. He had so little strength that he easily collapsed back into the bed. "You are in no condition to go running off looking to exact vengeance on your captors."

"It's…not..vengeance," he said slowly, so each word came out clearly without stuttering. "I….am….the….best person."

 _Sure, it has nothing to do with hurting those who hurt you._ Leia thought but she didn't say that out loud. No, instead, she tried a different approach. Spending most of her life in politics had taught her the value of choosing when and how to say something.

"Look, Poe," she said, using his first name. It was her secret weapon when talking with him. "I know you are the best pilot of the Resistance. Heck, you are one of the best pilots in the galaxy, period. You may even put my husband Han Solo or even my brother, Luke Skywalker to shame with your skills."

She could see the small smile on his lips, appreciating the praise she sent his direction. Even though he was battered and bruised, his inflated ego wasn't permanently damaged. At least he had that going for him.

"I hate to admit it, but you are like a son to me," she told him. "And it hurts me to see you brought so low. Those pilots in your squadron? They are _your_ children. As such, you must think of what's best for them. So, tell me, what's the best for them? For a loyal but royally battered and wounded pilot to lead them and be forced to have to keep an eye on him? Or for you to stay behind and let them show you they can take care of themselves?"

He frowned and folded his arms. He winced as he touched sore spots on him. He didn't say anything but his sulky attitude was exactly what she wanted. He knew she was right and he was wrong but couldn't bring himself to say the words. She may have chided him for lack of military decorum, but considering what he had been through, she'd let it slide this once.

She put a comforting hand on his shoulder, then turning on her heal, left the sick bay. Exiting was immediately a crazy house of business. She turned to Ackbar and Staturo who had been standing outside, not wanting to crowd the commander. She gave them a weary look.

"The First Order's location is saved on the flight computer of that TIE he brought in," she said. "According to him, the weapon was located in the same system he was held captive, even though he didn't see it personally."

"I wish he had," Ackbar grumpily said. "Then he'd be able to pin-point the precise location of the weapon. We have to launch our fleet now if we want to keep the Republic from losing more than just one system."

"As soon as we get the location I'll take the _Warhammer_ and our fighters and jump immediately into hyperspace for the planet," Statura said, "I'll send you the coordinates and then you alert Massassi Base about it. Perhaps we can throw a massive enough attack at them to end this war before it drags out."

Leia shook her head. "Admiral," she said sadly. "This war will be anything _but_ short."

 **Jedi Temple, Illum**

Kira opened her eyes to find the members of the Council standing around her. She frowned as she flicked her eyes from master to master, them looking down at her. She grunted as she put her hands on the ground and pushed herself up from her meditation spot. Pulling herself to her full-height, she found she only stood eye to eye with Master C'boath, the rest dwarfing her.

"Who were you speak to?" Master C'boath asked, his voice harsh as he asked.

"Master?" she asked, not sure what he was asking about.

His eyes darkened. "You were speaking to someone, young Rey," he clarified. "Who was it?"

"Oh that?" she asked, surprised at the question. "That was my brother…"

She didn't finish what she was about to say. Her voice trailed off as she looked at the gather trio of Jedi Masters. Master's Durron and C'boath exchanged looks. Master K'kruhk's eyes never left her. While it was hard to read the face of the Jedi, she could get a general sense of uncertainty.

"You have never spoken of a brother before," the Whiphid master said, his breath rising in a steamy cloud in front of him.

"I did not know I had one," she replied truthfully. "We connected through the Force though!" She looked around at the Jedi Masters, who seemed to understand what she was saying. "He was standing, right where you are, Master C'boath."

"We saw nothing," the Master replied with a snort. "All we saw was you talking to someone. That was nearly an hour ago."

Kira felt shock ripple through her. No, that couldn't be. She had just barely talked to Ben! She looked at Master Durron, who simply nodded his head, affirming his colleagues statement. She felt like someone who had a very long nap, wakes up and thinks it's the next day.

"What did he say to you child?" K'kruhk asked.

"Well….." she frowned, thinking to their conversation. "He said that familial bonds are the most powerful in the Force. He also said….."

She was interrupted as the door swung open to the Council chamber with a large boom. They all turned their attention on the Jedi Knight who stood in the doorway. It was the woman with the short-cropped dark hair and the nose piercings.

"Forgive me, my Masters," she inclined her head to them. "But we have been discovered! A massive task force from the First Order has just dropped out of hyperspace and are about to enter our atmosphere!"

The First Order? Here? Kira couldn't believe it! To have hidden for so long, what had happened? _Ben, where are you?_ She felt something hard grip her arm and she saw Master C'boath glaring at her, a dark flame behind his eyes.

"You have led them here!" he snarled. He was so close that Kira could smell his breath. She tried to not breath in his breath, which smelled of overcooked meats and rotten egg.

"Joruus!" Kyp snapped at him. "Unhand her, she had nothing to do with this!"

The Jedi Master let her go and scowled as he turned away. "I will prepare the defense of the temple," he snarled and stormed out. Kira expected him to grab a winter coat. Her eyes grew wide though as he headed out of the room and down the long staircase, summoning the Temple guards to prepare for the great battle ahead.

"Stay here," Master K'Kruhk told her, and turning, he exited the Council Chamber. "I will send Knight Zekk to be by your side. He will protect you."

She soon was alone, with even Master Durron heading off to prepare for battle. She hoped Chewie would be alright! She'd hate to see the massive Ewok die. She couldn't contain the smile that spread across her face at the teenage nickname she gave him.


	19. Who Owns the Skywalker Lightsaber?

**Chapter 18: Who Owns the Skywalker Lightsaber?**

 **Illum**

Lasers criss-crossed the perpetual winter landscape. Heavily garbed snow-troopers marched through the snow, nearly invisible. The snow storms had calmed almost to a dead stop, although a nice strong wind caused snow to ripple across the landscape, making the landscape look like fog was upon it. Ahead of them, yellow lightsabers could be seen twirling around like ancient wind-mills. The continual movement of the blades sent many of the bolts ricocheting. But one set of sabers fell, announcing the death of a Jedi.

Some troopers were on modified speeders with visors on the front. They tried weaving in at out of where Jedi were, but one exploded as a ball of greenish lightning struck it. Another one was sent flying haphazardly after a green-wielding Jedi jumped forward, lifting completely over the visor and cutting the trooper cleanly in two.

"Lower the ramp, but don't land," Kylo ordered the pilots. "Fly me over that line of yellow lightsabers."

"Yes, Jedi-killer," one of the pilots reported back and with a hit of the button, the back ramp began to lower.

The wind howled, nearly drowning everything out. Gripping the hilt tightly of his saber, Kylo turned and stalked to the opening. He reached up a hand and gripped on the pistons that had extended to allow the ramp to lower. He lifted his hand and pushed a button on the side of his mask.

"I'm joining the party, Captain," he said as soon as the HUD showed that the call had connected.

" _About time!_ " Phasma's voice sounded clearly in his ears. He was glad that the atmospheric conditions of the planet was not going to interfere with his comms. " _I was afraid you sit back and let me do all the work, sir_."

"As if," Kylo snorted in reply.

He timed it, waiting until he was indeed over the line of Jedi. Then he jumped, the gravity of the planet sucking him down as the wind whipped his tightly bound cap around in a flutter. He kneeled and landed in a snow-bank, the snow exploding in a cloud. Even as he allowed his legs to bend so he didn't have permanent knee damage, he thrust out his lightsaber hilt and pushed the button.

The snow evaporated in a cloud of steam around the crimson crackling blade. He gripped with the Force, holding the Jedi he had just speared and pulled him closer, cutting through every single muscle in his lower torso. The Jedi was wearing the mask of the elite Jedi Temple Guards. The Jedi had been quick, as Kylo had landed behind him and for his to have turned so fast. Even as the Temple Guard stood his emotions hidden by the mask, he still tried to raise his lightsaber in a futile gesture.

"Too slow," Kylo said and ripped up with his blade. The cloven form of the Jedi fell to the ground.

He turned and surveyed the battle-field. A green series of flashes flickered. He mouth curled in a snarl. He knew who that was. He ran across the snow-capped ground, approaching within a few seconds. He arrived on the scene, just in time to watch the Jedi Master point his age shrunken hands at the ground. Half a dozen snow-troopers were advancing on the Jedi, weapons raised. But Kylo watched as the old man threw lightning at the ground and sent it surging forward. The snow raised like in a rolling with green lightning coursing through it. The troopers were struck and the intensity of the blast was such that they were fried instantly and fell, smoke sizzling from their suits.

"Young Solo," Master C'boath said, not turning to face Kylo Ren. "It has been too long. Have you returned to finish your training?"

"No," Kylo replied, gripping the hilt of his blade tighter.

"Good," C'boath said, "Because I would not allow it."

He spun on his feet, and Kylo could see the insanity that always had just been beneath the surface of the cloned Jedi trying to escape. Kylo lunged forward, but he was to slow. The Master stretched out his clawed hands and sent a stream of green laced lightning towards Kylo. He blocked just in time, but the blast hurled him back. He landed with feet firmly on the ground and dug in. Slowly he pushed forward, now being forced to grip with both hands at the power that was directed straight at him.

"In my isolation I have heard tales of the Jedi-Killer," the ancient Jedi sneered. He increased the insensity of the lightning. Kylo 's HUD began to flash as the heat of the lightning was already approaching the heat tolerance of his suit. And he wasn't even being hit _yet! "_ But all I see before me is a spoiled child. One who refused to acknowledge anyone's right to the Force. You claim you are strong? You will not kill me, arrogant fool!"

Kylo found his knees buckling underneath him and he felt the cold wet snow around his pant legs as he was forced to his knees. His teeth were grinding and he was doing all he could to keep the blade between him and the lightning. A new pulse of lightning increased the intensity and he found to his horror that the blade, crackling with unstable power, was beginning to push closer and closer to his face. He realized that if Joruus C'boath couldn't kill him with electricity, he would kill him using his own blade.

"I will kill you!" a voice shouted.

A flash of silver and black sped past him. It was hard to make out but he thought he saw the figure skid on their knees across the snow. A scream pierced the battlefield and suddenly, the massive force that had pushed against him vanished, and he fell forward. A quick throw of his hand caught the ground, keeping him from face-planting. Looking up, he saw a grisly image.

Phasma was on her knees, her spear jutted outwards. The Jedi Council Member stood before her, but he was slumped forward. She had skidded across the snow and speared the Jedi while he was too busy to redirect his attack. Phasma twisted to the side, and with a grunt, she pulled the spear out, and the Jedi Master fell to the ground, a corpse.

"I know, I know," Phasma said, pushing herself to her feet. "You had it all sorted, sir."

Kylo laughed as he pushed himself up. They turned together towards the face of the Jedi Temple. A Jedi Council Member was kneeling at the door, a massive conical hat set upon his large furry head. Kylo looked to Phasma and nodded to her.

"Together," he said and they made the way across the snow-laden ground towards the Jedi.

He did not stir. He did not rise from his meditation position. Even as the two inseparable allies walked right up to him, he did not move. Kylo stopped no more than two feet away. Phasma raised her blaster-rifle but Kylo held up a hand. He had always respected Master K'Kruhk, more than any other Jedi Master. He would not murder him this way.

"What you seek is not here, Kylo Ren," the Whiphid said, his voice, ancient and wise, rose above the wind that had died to a breeze. Thermal explosives were going off behind them, back where the main battle was taking place.

"You don't know what I seek," Kylo retorted.

K'Kruhk sighed but made no other outward sign of his emotions. "I only know too well," the Jedi Master said. "Long have you looked for a way to ease the pain of your guilt. Long had you looked to right the wrongs of your past. There is no erasing the past, Ren."

"I will have the girl," Kylo Ren said. The old Jedi was strong in the Force, and he saw many things. Yet he was ancient, and his powers were weak. He obviously had no idea of what he was talking about.

"There are five women I see in your future," K'Kruhk said. "The one who leads. The one who followed you into darkness. The one that comes from you. The one that serves you and the one who destiny has touched. You will be the death of them all, Kylo Ren."

The words chilled him to the core. The Force granted visions to those who used it. He knew that perhaps better than anyone else. The future was always in motion, and the rush to prevent what would happen may indeed be what brought what one saw about. It was a nasty trick of the Force, to prey upon the impatience of those who did not understand the purpose of it.

"I am afraid that your time has run up," Kylo said, and ignited his lightsaber. He felt Phasma raise her blaster-rifle and the weapon power up, preparing to take a shot. "Today you die."

The Jedi snorted. "I have been killed many times," he said, and holding a single massive arm before him, ignited the thick green blade of his weapon. "Or so I am told."

 ** _Finalizer_ , Starkiller System**

"Half an hour before the weapon fires again, sir," the technician called out from the station he worked at. The tech, a dark-skinned human with black eyes, had been on the Finalizer since it had been commissioned six years prior. The assault on the Temple of Ossus, had been the first mission this proud ship had undertaken, and the tech was still there.

"Specialist 847, is it not?" Hux asked, stepping up next to the tech.

"Yes sir," the technician responded, his voice crisp as he had affirmed the General's inquiry.

"Well, Specialist 847," Hux said, "You have done good work these past few years. How does the rank of Chief Specialist sound to you?"

The technician's mouth dropped open, and he gaped. Hux scowled in disapproval of the lack of decorum and the technician slammed his mouth shut. Inwardly, Hux couldn't help but find the whole thing amusing. But this was a military command after-all, and he would not have lapse in decorum and slip in professional demeanor.

"I am honored to be considered for the promotion sir," the technician replied.

"Then as your first act as Chief Specialist, you will relay a new set of coordinates to the ground-crew for the weapon," Hux ordered.

"Of course, sir," the technician said.

"I will type in the coordinates myself and then you will send the shot correction order," Hux said. The Technician stepped to the side as Hux brought up the onscreen keyboard. As he punched in the keys to input the new target, the ginger general couldn't prevent the tiniest of grins to cross his face.

 _I think it's time you offend me no more, Ren._

 **Jedi Temple, Illum**

The temple shook as an explosion hit the temple walls. The fighting outside seemed to have lasted for hours, but Kira knew it certainly couldn't have been that long. But time was dragging at a snail's pace and Kira couldn't stop herself from pacing back and forth.

"Calm yourself, young one," Zekk said from where he was standing, arms crossed in front of him. He had been in the same position since he had arrived, the only Jedi not currently battling the First Order soldiers.

"You're not _that_ much older than me," Kira said grumpily. She turned and stamped her foot. "Sith-spit, I hate waiting!"

"Is it Sith-spit wait?" Zekk asked, his eyes following her as she continued to pace back and forth before her. "Is it hate that causes waiting? Or is waiting the cause of sith-spit? Or is it a combination, that hate causes sith-spit to wait?"

Kira stopped and rolled her eyes, leaning against a wall. Even though it was ice, she didn't care. She put her forearm against the wall and closed her eyes. She could feel….so much pain and anguish. People were dying out there, and a great sadness spread through her. She felt tears well up in her closed eyelids and lifting her other hand, placed her fingers firmly against her eyes.

"It is the Dark Side you feel," the Darkest Knight said, "It is…..argh!"

Kira's eyes snapped open and she turned to see Zekk fall to a knee, gripped his chest. She ran over to him, seeing his face twisted in pain. She knelt by him, putting an arm on his shoulder. His breathing was shaky and his back trembled as he both inhaled and exhaled, eyes squeezed shut.

"What happened?" she asked, panic in her voice.

"Calm…..yourself," Zekk snarled between clenched teeth. "It is not me that hurts. Master K'Kruhk…..he's fallen."

Kira was confused. How could he possibly know that? How could he possibly know the Jedi Master was dead? Even as she wondered at what he said, Zekk's face shot to the door, and she could have sworn that his face suddenly darkened. Similar to how the ground looks when a cloud passes infront of the sun.

The door swung open, and fear spread through Kira. Standing in the doorway was a black robed figure. A mask of twisted features that looked like a skull. In his hand, a crackling blade. The figure swung back the blade to a low guard position, sticking away from him and pointed a finger at Zekk.

"Traitor!" the figure bellowed, his helmet's vocalizer making the scream a deep animalistic sound.

"Who is the traitor?" Zekk asked, anger in his eyes. "The traitor who remains opposed to the light? Or the traitor who betrays the one who betrayed the light by returning to it?"

"Damn you!" the helmeted figure snarled. "I thought you would have finished speaking in riddles. The girl…..she belong to me."

"Not if anything to say about it, I have," Zekk said and he withdrew the cylindrical hilt of his lightsaber out. He turned to face Kira and motioned with his dark eyes for her to step back. Kira found herself unwilling to abandon him, but stepped back anyways, stepping back to behind the chairs that Masters had sat.

With a flick of his finger, a red blade shot forth. And then he lunged forward. The two crimson blades locked, and had Kira been fully aware, she would have realized that Zekk's blade was steady and firm, compared to the crackling unstable energy of the helmeted figure.

"I see you never replaced your blade," the helmeted man said.

"I choose to remind myself of what I have done," Zekk said and they took a unison step backwards.

"And yet you forget what Master Skywalker did to us," he retorted. At the same time he pounded his side. "Otherwise you'd never have gone back to the Jedi."

"I forget nothing," Zekk said. "That's _why_ I returned. Much better Jedi disapproval than the suffering Snoke inflicts."

They sprang at each other again. Again and again their blades met, a flash of yellow with each strike connected. Kira watched with horrified fascination at the footwork, the spinning of bodies, the fluidic motion of the blades. Zekk swung down, his blade falling. The helmeted one held out his blade, deactivated it at the last second. Zekk's blade was still falling, his momentum carrying him forward. The blade activated, and Zekk's torso and lower body separated. He was dead before he hit the ground, his hard face suddenly melting into a shocked expression.

"No!" Kira wept, tears pouring from her eyes. Fumbling, she pulled the lightsaber hilt from her belt and activated it. Even though tears made her vision foggy, she could see the dark man as he turned to face her.

"Do you even know how to use that?" he asked mockingly. "I, Kylo Ren, have spent years with the blade. Mastering it. One does not pick up a lightsaber and automatically know how to use it."

Kira blinked a few times, her eyes clearing of tears just to have new ones well up. She stepped forward, screaming as she stabbed outwards, lunging forward. Kylo Ren laughed as he easily blocked the blade. She stabbed again and he easily sidestepped it and with a free hand shoved her backwards. She tripped over the legs of Zekk and she fell towards the door. The lightsaber plunged through the door as she hit it.

"That saber, it belongs to me," Kylo Ren said. "Not some upstart girl whose parents abandoned her."

The words seared into her. She screamed as she pulled the blade from the door and swung at him. He easily deflected the blade. He backed up a step.

"Not a girl who took on a name she hasn't earned," he scorned her, "Nor ever will."

She wildly struck with the lightsaber but even as she swung, Kylo Ren thrust out his hand. It felt like a hand had grabbed her entire body and she was thrown through the door. It burst around her as she fell down the long stairs. Her feet first hit the stairs and her entire body slammed backwards onto the stairs, aiming downwards.

Kylo Ren advanced down the stairs at a steady walk. Kira grunted as she picked herself up and reignited the blade that she had somehow deactivated when she was thrown through the door. It was now his turn to attack and he drove relentlessly. She instantly knew as she blocked each attack that if he had wanted to kill her, he would have.

"You are holding the blade too tightly," he informed her as he punched her in the face when she blocked an attack. "You are trying to use the weapon like it's a staff or something. It's not. You need to keep your grip loose. Not that loose, you see how you nearly lost the lightsaber? There you go, good."

Kira took each thing he said to heart but before she knew it, she had been driven from the temple and into the area just outside of the temple. Now that they were in the open, she could see that all around her, in a massive semi-circle were hundreds of white-clad stormtroopers. The dead body of Master K'Kruhk lay in the snow, his head completely severed from his body.

"The thing about Whiphids," Kylo Ren said, kicking her hard to the ground. "Is that in order to kill them, you have to remove their head. Most people don't so they return to life, after going through a healing coma. It's a matter of knowing how to kill them. Like Han Solo. It just took the right….gah!"

Red hot rage flooded through Kira when he said the name of Han Solo. Her father! How dare he speak his name? She had lunged forward, and the tip of her blade pierced the area of Kylo Ren right in-front of the shoulder.

Roaring in rage, Kylo struck. He connected their blades together, twisted in short circles and then thrust upwards. Even as her hand went up with the motion, he struck her, first in the same area she had hit him. As she screamed, he circled her and hot fire ran up her spine. Kira fell to the snow, falling unconscious between raging fire along her spine and shoulder, and the freezing bite of the snow.

Kylo Ren growled in pain, looking down at the fresh wound on his shoulder. It was glowing still with the new hole. It was one of two wounds this day, the other one a nice sized hole in his stomach. That had been a parting gift from Master K'Kruhk before he died. But…..how did Kylo Ren get hit by this girl?

Yes, he understood he had been struck by a lightsaber. But how had she gotten past his defenses? How had the Force not told him of that strike? He had seen the rage in her face but the Force had literally told him _nothing_ about the direction or even that she was going to strike. It was like that in her rage, she had become invisible to the Force.

"Are you…. _kerk_ …right sir?" Phasma asked.

Kylo Ren turned to her, as saw the damaged helmet. K'Kruhk had nearly killed Phasma and it had been his decision to try taking her down that had given Kylo his opening. But her helmet was cracked in several places and a massive dent caved in her breastplate.

"I am fine," he said, "You?"

"Never…. _kerk_ …ter, sir," Phasma replied. The damage to her helmet had affected her vocalizer. But she was up, even though she was leaning on her spear, indicating just how rough a toll it had taken on her.

He deactivated his lightsaber and clipped it to his belt. The young woman, Kira was sprawled before her. Her back was a searing line where his lightsaber had ripped open her back. Even an inch further and he would have killed her. But no, he wasn't going to kill her with his lightsaber.

He looked to where the lightsaber of Anakin Skywalker stuck from the snow, and triumph filled him. At long last, it was his! He reached out with the Force, and felt the hilt like a ghostly after-image in his hand. He pulled on it through the Force but it only wiggled. Grinding his teeth he exerted more effort into pulling the lightsaber to himself. It wiggled harder but did not move.

"Why won't you come?!" he spat as he struggled even harder to call it to him. "That lightsaber is mine!"

With that, the lightsaber hilt shot from the snow. His HUD display at once registered how fast it was going, and he barely had time to dodge it. He saw it flash past him in a reddish blur, distorted by the natural filtration of the visor.

He turned, and dread filled him. A man stood there, arm extended, mechanical fingers clasped firmly around the lightsaber. His robes were various shades of taupe and his full-face beard matched he robes. The robes fluttered in the breeze, something magical in the way that it moved. And this was the one man that Kylo Ren hated the most in all the galaxy.

"No, Ben," Luke Skywalker, Grand Jedi Master said. "It's mine."


	20. Snow and Space

**Chapter 19: Snow and Space**

 **Illum**

"It's been a long time, Ben," Luke said, lowering his hand so that the lightsaber was pointed at the ground, even though it remained unlit.

"How did you get here?" the masked warrior said, pointing an accusing finger at him.

"By a good old fighter," Luke shrugged his shoulders.

Kylo turned to the chrome plated stormtrooper and pointed at Luke. "Kill him!" he snapped.

The trooper looked over at Luke, and then looked back at Kylo Ren. "Kill whom, sir?" she asked.

"He's right there!" Kylo nearly screamed in fury. "Are you blind, Phasma? It's Luke Skywalker!"

"She can't see me," Luke said, sounding slightly amused. "I am using the Force to blind the weak-minded. Apparently, this Phasma is just as weak minded as all the troopers I just walked past."

"I will kill you myself!" he growled and unclipped the lightsaber from his hip that he had been carrying. The sabers ignited, crackling with unstable energy. "You have ventured too far to escape, old man!"

"You must look rather silly to all these stormtroopers," Luke raised his hand and indicated the crowd. "They must think that are you are quite mad."

"Shut up!" Kylo snapped. He pointed the lightsaber straight at Luke. "Why have you come here?"

"Two reasons really," Luke said. "Well, three. The first is I've come to take the girl. She is powerful, her potential is deep. In many ways, she is like you Ben."

"I will kill her!" Kylo snarled, "Like so many others."

"The second is I've come to apologize."

Kylo's lightsaber held stiffly in the air, but he didn't move. Luke could see the hesitation, the disbelief that was in the young man's frame. One that was no sure he was speaking the truth. The one named Phasma took a few steps back, although if Luke had been her, he'd have gone to get out of that damaged armor.

"Apologize?" Kylo asked suspiciously. "The great Luke Skywalker comes to apologize?"

"I have," Luke affirmed. "I…..I have failed you, Ben. In my arrogance, I did not want to believe you when you spoke of this Snoke. Luke Skywalker, Jedi Master, had overthrown evil, and yet this little boy spoke of an evil that was greater than the Emperor or Vader? Nonsense! But had I believed in you, how much could have been avoided? I am sorry that this divide has grown between you and the light. I wish to make amends and hopefully I can fulfill my third purpose for being here."

"And that is?" Kylo asked.

"To bring you back," Luke said. He tapped the old lightsaber against his leg as he spoke. "Ben, this path you are on, it will only destroy you. Snoke cares nothing about you, but what you can do for him. Once his purposes are fulfilled, you will be tossed aside."

Kylo Ren laughed, the vocalizer making it sound deranged. The stormtroopers that were gathered in the large semi-circle looked back and forth to each-other uncomfortably. Luke was certain that none could see him, so Ben must have looked like a madman, howling like a robotic dog to the wind.

"Luke Skywalker the Redeemer comes to save my soul!" Kylo Ren snarled, the laughter dying as quickly as it began. "I have killed dozens of your precious Jedi. I have helped create a weapon that destroy the worlds of millions. I killed Han Solo. I captured your children and I have sent them to Snoke!"

"No…." Luke said, pain in his face. "What have you done, Ben?"

"I am bringing order to the galaxy!" Kylo snapped. "Your lightsaber? It has been encased into Snoke's throne as an armrest. You fled from before Snoke's wrath and abandoned the galaxy. You are a coward!"

"No, Ben," Luke shook his head, sadness in his eyes. "That's not the reason I have been in hiding. It's not fear, Ben…."

"My name is Kylo Ren," he roared, "And I will kill you and prove myself!"

He charged across, his lightsaber crackling. He swung for Luke's head, only to miss completely as the Jedi Master tilted his body so far back that the blade completely missed him. Kylo Ren stumbled and Luke stood straight, turning to face him. Kylo straightened, and hit himself several times in his side, right where the hot cauterized burn of a lightsaber wound stood out dark and black.

"You hide so many things from me!" Kylo snarled. "Held me back from my potential."

"I hide nothing from you," Luke shook his head. "What you wish…..what you want…..you were not responsible enough for it. _Are_ not. "

He lunged forward, stabbing straight forward. Luke stepped to the side and twisted in place, allowing him to bypass him completely. Kylo turned and slashed savagely at Luke, again and again trying to cut the man who he felt betrayed him. Yet each time, Luke dodged his blows. Never did Luke activate the lightsaber.

"You coward!" Kylo stumbled as he shouted. He thumped his wound several more times. Luke could feel the Dark Side surging like adrenaline through his body. "Fight me! You are a coward, like your best friend. Like your entire Order! They hide while we take away the galaxy, make it something more."

"I am afraid," Luke admitted. "I'm afraid that you think too highly of yourself. You can never beat me, Ben. I am too powerful for you, and I could easily destroy you. That is the reason I don't fight you. I could destroy you, but I want to save you, Ben."

"When I am done with you," Kylo spat, "I'll kill your sister. Sacrifices to the Dark Side, to Snoke, they must be made. Her blood, like the blood of every Jedi, Republic soldier, Imperial who gets in our way. It will mingle into an altar from which Snoke will rule."

Luke closed his eyes, pain through his face. He opened it and nodded. "If that is your decision," he sighed, "Then I will do what I must."

Kylo bellowed and charged him, holding his lightsaber high. He swung down, and Luke spun to the side. Yet even as he did, he activated the blue blade and slashed backwards. Kylo yelped in pain and jumped back. A dark line appeared on his leg, a piece of the hem of his robe falling off with the edges glowing.

"Stop this ridiculous fight," Luke said, deactivating the blade and standing. "You must look foolish, battling thin air and a sudden wound appearing on your leg."

"I will never stop!" Kylo howled and charged him.

He cut in a long arc. Luke bent back but even as he did, he angled the hilt of the lightsaber and flicked it on for merely a moment. But it was enough. Kylo staggered backwards, crying out in pain as his other shoulder had been lanced.

Even as they stood there, facing each other, the light around them flickered, in three rapid flashes. And then the sky began growing red. Kylo looked up, and Luke could feel the horror in his nephew. The betrayal oozed from him like puss from a wound. Kylo let out a roar like a wounded animal, which he technically was.

"That is the nature of the Dark Side, Ben," Luke said, pointing to the reddening sky. "Your allies have turned on you. Betrayal is the way of the Dark Side. Come with me, nephew. Come with me and we can start mending you, both body and soul."

Kylo turned his face to him, and as the sky darkened in a reddish hue, stormtroopers began to fall back, running for their ships. First Order ships had specifically been designed to be able to not be affected by the EMP waves caused by shots from the Galaxy Gun. As they stared at each other, Luke felt the rage and hate filling his nephew more with every passing second.

"I would rather die a thousand deaths than ever trust you again," Kylo hissed at him.

With a sad shake of his head, Luke reignited the blue blade. It stood in stark contrast to the world that was turning red in the hue of blood. A singular beacon of light in a world about to die. He lifted his blade to Ben in a salute and then charged him. His blade was so fast that Kylo barely kept up with it. The first six swings Kylo parried, but it was only with the greatest effort. Kylo overreached a counterstrike, and that's when Luke struck.

His blade slashed through the handle of the Knight of Ren's lightsaber. Even as pieces fell, his blade connected just shy of the armpit. Up in a diagonal slash he went, and with a series of sparks, it cut right through the mask of the helmet. Kylo collapsed on the ground, and Luke stood over him, lightsaber held to his side.

Deactivating the blade, realizing that he no longer posed a danger, Luke stepped up to the unconscious form of Rey. Reaching his ship would take too long, so instead he Force ran up to the side of the mountain walls of the Temple. He timed it right, so he could leap up twenty feet into the air. Holding Rey tightly, he angled his feet so they caught the Temple walls and then kicked backwards, spiraling through the air, and with a thump, landed on the speeding _Millennium Falcon_.

As he approached the top hatch and held out his hand to open it with the Force, Luke was sad. He had defeated his nephew, but he would return. And with him, Snoke would come.

 ** _Finalizer,_ Starkiller Base System**

"I want Yavin system destroyed on the next shot," General Hux said, arms pressed behind his back.

"Ground station says that it will be done," an officer on the bridge, a recent transfer from the _Emperor's Wrath_ called out from her station.

"Good," Hux sniffed.

In an hour and a half they would destroy the Republic's Regional Command at Yavin IV. It amazed him at how unimaginative the Republic was. Most of their Regional Command Posts were set up in locations of great victories. Lothal and Endor were also Regional Commands as well. And with Kylo Ren out of the way…..

He smiled to himself. Yes, now all the glory would be his. And the dark side mystic would not badger him anymore nor humiliate him in front of his crew. Half an hour later, there were still no calls from any survivors from Chrome Dome Division. If he killed that big blond bimbo that Kylo Ren patronized, he wouldn't be overly disappointed over her loss.

"Sir," an ensign in the tactical booth called out. "Hyperspace signature dropping out of hyperspace. It's massive sir."

"Must be the Grand Admiral," Hux said sourly. Her flagship was an _Eclipse-_ Class Dreadnought named _Ice-Heart._ So her ship would be a massive signature. He hated the Grand Admiral. There was no reason that _woman_ should lead the First Order's military. "Open up hailing….."

"We are being hailed by the ship," the ensign reported.

"Alright," he nodded. He walked over to the viewscreen and turning, nodded to the non-com. "Open a channel."

As the channel opened and he turned to look at it, several things jumped out to him. The first was that while he was no teacher of anatomy, the person on the screen was most definitely _not_ a woman. The second was that the surrounding of the man he saw was a light beige, not the cold gun-metal grey dura-steel found on First Order warships. The last was his uniform, which was also a beige.

"Who are you?" Hux demanded.

"I am Admiral Statura of the New Republic onboard the _NRSS Warhammer,"_ the other man declared. "You have been found guilty of war crimes against the New Republic. Surrender and I will be merciful. Resist, and I will not be so kind."

"How did you find us?" Hux asked, scowling at the screen. "This location is top secret. Most of our own people have no idea of its existence or location."

"Don't you just hate traitors who tell the enemy top-level secrets?" Admiral Statura asked. "You have three minutes to comply with my surrender order or you will be destroyed."

"Now just wait a second!" Hux snapped, lifting a fist and shaking it at the screen. "I am General-"

The screen shut off and he stared in rage at the viewscreen. Had that slimy sith-spit just hang up on him? The insolence was insulting! He turned to his bridge crew, his pinched face twisted in rage. They were sitting, staring at him, waiting for orders.

"What in the name of the Emperor's bones are you waiting for!" he demanded. "Sound battlestations! Open up a Battle Channel to all our ships. We will make that fool pay for daring to venture here alone. Bring up holographic imagery of the enemy vessel at once!"

* * *

Statura stood before the empty holo-table. A blue grid was lit up on the face, throbbing to indicate that it was ready for input from tactical. He glanced up at the viewscreen, the pale face of the First Order general replaced by the light blue planet. It was snowy on the planet, with an estimated ninety-percent according to initial scans of the planet.

"Find the exact location of this superweapon!" he called to the bridge crew. He nodded at the acceptable responses from the crew, acknowledging his orders.

"Enemy ships are moving to envelope us sir," a weapons officer said from her console, her Rodian fingers tracing the enemy ships. The holographic table before Satatura lit up with the locations of the enemy ships as the Rodian traced them with her finger. Marvelous technology.

"Oh well," he said, and turned to his XO, a Quarren male. "Launch fighters at once, Captain. Bring the main weapon online and fire on the direct center of the enemy lines."

He didn't wait for the Quarren to respond. He looked back to the holotable and smiled.

* * *

"The enemy is launched fighters," tactical reported.

"How many?" Hux demanded.

"We are counting two full squadrons," the report came back.

Hux snarled. Well, two could play at that game. Two squadrons would be easy to take down. They had overwhelming fire superiority.

"I want two squadrons launched from every ship," he barked. Turning he strode to the side to a console that displayed all the systems on the ship and their current operating status. A quick overview showed that the engines were not shielded. "I want to put ten percent of our power into shielding our engines."

"The enemy is….." a tactical officer trailed off, frowning as he reached up and tapped his screen.

"What is it man?" Hux snapped. He was not in the mood for this. There was a ship as massive as the First Death Star that had just dropped out of hyperspace and he needed to focus on the upcoming battle. They had to protect the Galaxy Gun at all costs.

"Sir," the officer said, looking over at him confused. "I am reading an energy surge on a scale of…..well…..I'm not sure what I'm seeing sir."

"Mother of moons!" Hux growled, storming over and pushed him aside with the palm of his hand.

He looked at the readings and frowned as well. He had never seen readings like this. As he studied it more, watching it grow in power, his mind flashed back to his days in the Advanced Military Academy onboard the Super Star Destroyer _Eclipse._ It had been Palpatine's personal Super Star Destroyer and he had sent it to the Unknown Regions as a rallying point for his Operation Resurrection. It had been turned into the most exclusive of the military academies of the First Order, with only a dozen every five years qualifying to enter it.

He remembered a lesson he had learned from the Clone Wars course on the ship. He was one of the few who truly understood that Palpatine had manipulated both sides in the war to allow his glorious vision to come to fruition. During it, the cyborg General Grievous had created a super-weapon that was a massive ION cannon…..

His eyes widened. No….it couldn't be!

"Who are they aiming at?" he demanded.

"The _Rebirth_ and the _Trident,"_ an officer reported.

"Tell them to move their ships immediately out of the way!" he shouted but even as he spoke, a massive beam of white light shot from the enemy ship.

It engulfed both Star Destroyers within seconds. The column stopped, but the Star Destroyers were tilting in space. They were out of control and as he looked at the fleet screen, the two showed red next to the other five ships who showed a green status.

* * *

The Republic fighters tore past the squadrons of TIEs that had been caught in the ION blast. They didn't even focus on them, instead zooming for the powerless Star Destroyers. Each fighter fired a single missile at the Star Destroyers, each squadron taking a single ship. Explosions wracked the powerless ships, and even as they past by, the gunner on the last E-Wing Bomber watched as people were shot into space through the holes in the ships, freezing almost instantly.

Behind them roared the _Warhammer_ at full-throttle. It was unable to fire again its main weapon. It took so much energy it would take roughly sixteen hours to recharge. But that was not it's only weapons. It fired dozens of guided missiles, aiming them at the closest Star Destroyer that was moving to support its comrades. The first dozen failed to penetrate but the continuous barrage soon knocked out the shields and the Star Destroyer was nearly torn in half as the rest of the missiles plunged towards its mid-section.

Somehow it managed to remained intact and unbroken. Yet it could only respond with two turbolasers. Statura smirked at pitiful attempt the Star Destroyer was putting up. Now was time to deliver the blow that was its name-sake.

"Ramming speed," he ordered and braced as the ship accelerated at a single burst. The front of the Warhammer easily plowed through the three crippled Star Destroyers. With nearly four miles of solid durasteel at the front of the conical front of the ship, it didn't even feel the Star Destroyers as they were smashed to pieces. "Find me that superweapon!"

* * *

"Get us behind that ship at take it from the rear!" Hux roared the orders.

In less than three minutes, he had lost three of seven star destroyers. That was almost forty-three percent of his entire fleet. He was not about to let this damnable enemy ship take the superweapon. _His_ superweapon.

" _General Hux_ ," a voice called to him and he turned to the group of holographic captains that stood on his bridge. It was the oldest and most experienced of his captains. Captain Anjo from Andmar, on the _Extinction_. " _We have lost our entire fighter contingents. Do we send out bombers?_ "

"Yes," Hux said, standing up to his full height. They still outnumbered their foe. They could win this battle. "Anjo, you and I will swing to their rear and take out their engines. Raptor and Konstanza: concentrate your firepower on the enemy missile batteries. They will have used up their main weapon. Keep in front of it and keep up the heavy fire. We can do this!"

" _Hi ho!_ " the officers shouted and saluted him.

* * *

Kare's fighter shook as enemy flak filled the atmosphere. She deftly guided the ship around the sky bursts. As she struggled to keep ahead of it, Pava was shooting down anti-air missiles that rose from the ground.

"At the very least they didn't have surface fighters," Pava said, "Otherwise this would be _really_ bad!"

"Yeah," Kare gritted as a piece of exploding flak forced her to a sharp drop to avoid being taken in the nose of her fighter. "Great."

" _All fighters,"_ the commander of Blue Squadron called over the open comms of the Republic ships. " _Head to 05. I believe I see the weapon over there. Engage and pull out so the Admiral can take it out."_

"Affirmative Blue Leader," she said over the comms. "Black Squadron. Fall into escort formation around the bombers. Black Five, you are my wing. Seven and Nine, you take the right. Eleven, fall in the rear and make sure we don't have unwanted company."

" _Righto Black Three,"_ Black Six said in the channel.

The small vessels turned in the indicated direction and poured on the speed. Even though there were no fighters, old-style Imperial walkers were moving into position and where the surface cannons weren't able to track, they let out a furious barrage as each took position.

They raced across the planet, and suddenly, an explosion from the bomber group caught her attention. The middle-most bomber suddenly began to veer towards the ground, smoke billowing behind them. She hoped they'd eject…..but they didn't.

"Karabast," Pava breathed from the back. "Why didn't they eject?"

" _Probably didn't want to be captured by the First Order_ ," Black Eight commented.

"Stow it Squad!" Kare ordered the fighters. "Angle your deflector screens to your ventral sides. Evasive maneuvers but keep within supporting range of the bombers."

 _Easier said then done_ , she thought to herself as another bomber was clipped but managed to stay flying.

* * *

The _Warhammer_ shuddered as a missile tube went off-line. Yet they held their fire, only lancing out with the lasers. Statura needed every missile saved for the big target. But the size of the ship meant it could take a lot of damage and not even feel it.

Just as the ship shuddered from an engine failing, they got confirmation of target coordinates. He smiled, glad at how swiftly it had happened. He slapped hard the table and turned to weapons control. They would end this battle quick enough.

"Open fire on the target coordinates," he ordered.

There was no time to lose. Too many had already died by this monstrosity. It was time to end this battle and threat to the galaxy.

* * *

" _Fire a single round of missiles then break off the attack and make at once for space_ ," Blue Leader ordered all fighters.

Now that was something that Kare could get behind. Yet even as they launched theirs, Pava swore. "Incoming!"

The missiles from the _Warhammer_ slammed into the large tower that they had only just barely started their own attack run on. They were forced to dodge the missiles that came screaming through the sky in column of flame. The fighters were turning to leave, when Kare's ship was hit. The bottom was torn apart and even as she felt the ship beginning to disintegrate, the blood of her gunner splashed the cockpit. She had been blown apart by a blast. As the entire ship roared into a fireball, Kara closed her eyes.

 _Snap…_

* * *

" _They've hit the weapon!_ " the Base Commandant reported to Hux. His hologram was hazy. " _They just set off the ammunition that was being transported as well. The entire planet is about to be destroyed!_ "

"Forget the planet!" the Captain said from near Hux. "The entire system is about to go!"

"Sir?" a nervous voice asked. "Is that suppose to look like that?"

Even as he said that, the hologram of the Commandant shook, went static than vanished. Hux didn't even bother asking about getting the connection back. They had lost communication with Starkiller Base. The question from the subordinate made Hux turn in the direction of the planet. Hux couldn't see the planet for the massive dreadnought blocking his view. Yet he was seeing a red hue appearing around the edges of the ship. His eyes narrowed and hardened.

"Order every ship to jump to Hyperspace immediately!" he barked. "We have two minutes to get ahead of the EMP wave! Jump now! You have the bridge, Captain."

As the officers scurried to launch the ship, Hux turned and stalked away from the bridge. He was going to have to report to Snoke his failure. A hard knot grew in his gut. He knew nothing good could come from that conversation. Exiting into the hallway, he took a deep breath and punched the wall as hard as he could.


	21. Jedi Steps

**Chapter 20: Jedi Steps**

 **Unknown Planet, Unknown Regions**

Slowly, Kira's eyes opened. At first she wasn't sure if her eyes were working. It looked like her vision was blocky. She closed her eyes, raised her hands and rubbed her eyelids. Slowly she opened them again. Her vision was still blocky…..no….wait! She blinked a few times and looked left to right. No, that made more sense.

It wasn't her vision that was blocky. She was in a hut that was made of rocks, stacked one on top of the other in a round conical shape. She pushed herself up, grunting. She stopped, frowning. A memory of fire spread across her back and sitting up, she noticed she was topless. But she didn't care, as she turned to look as her back. She frowned at what she saw.

Her back….it looked different. Like a long robotic spine was on her back. Reaching back, she touched it, feeling the cold metal. She bent forward and then straightened. Each motion she could hear the softest whirring of motors. The small clicking of individual robotic plates that made the spine.

She leaned forward, putting her face in her hands. She….she was damaged now. She remembered her other wound and reached to touch it. First thing she noticed that….oh yeah….she was naked! But also, that the wound had been healed. Yet as she looked at it, it was clear to see the scar that seemed to had been dug deep into her shoulder.

Blinking she looked around and saw a pile of clothes folded neatly on a small table next to a small fireplace. The lightsaber was placed on top of the pile. She reached out and grabbed them clothes and unfolded them. They were….well…..different. Light grey almost blue in color, the clothes were in three. A pair of pant, a tunic and a set of robes. A brown utility belt was on the table.

It took her only a few minutes to put them on, and she spotted a pair of boots on the floor next to the table. Grabbing the boots, she slid them on and standing, grabbed the lightsaber. She didn't know where she was, but she wasn't going to stay. Not against her will.

Holding the lightsaber tightly in her hand…..not too tightly, as the masked warrior had told her…..she stepped through the door. There wasn't really a door though. There was merely a torn blanket that hung from the curved entrance. Pushing the ragged blanket apart, she stepped outside, and into a small village. All the huts looked similar to her hut that she had been in, round and conical. Grass grew between bricks on the huts, indicating that they had been there for a long time.

Frog-faced aliens, lumpy and grey moved about the huts. Off-color white robes hung on their bodies and necklaces with a round medallion. They moved up and down a small stone path, uneven from long years. None of them went into the huts though. They plastered cracks on walls, a few were setting up a new ring of stones, perhaps a new hut? A trio walked down the path, a wooden wheel barrel with large branches in it.

She frowned, looking around. It was hilly, the place she was on. She smelled salt and turning, she walked up to the edge of the village and looked across, saw a massive ocean spreading before her. A few islands could be seen in the far distance. Twin suns were rising, their light filtered from clouds that hung to the horizon.

She heard the music. That music that she had followed so many times before. The music that had led her to many places. She turned and saw the ghost of Anakin Skywalker standing next to her. He looked at her with a kind smile, and an approving nod. Dramatically he lifted his hand and pointed towards a path that ran to the right side of the island.

Kira took a deep breath and started walking. She followed the path as it exited the village. The grass was short and springy around the path, and rocks jutted from the left side of the path, leading towards the summit of the mountain. She followed the path as it dipped down. For maybe a quarter of an hour she walked.

She turned with the curving path and soon found herself in a village similar to the one that she had seen before. Yet unlike the first village, this one was completely empty. And unlike the first one, the area between the huts, many dug into the rockface itself, was set with stone.

No one was in the village, but the music propelled her on. The music like a whistling. Past the village she walked, following the music as it propelled her forward. She looked down and saw the _Millennium Falcon_ parked down below on a flat part of the island that jutted out towards the sea. She could see Chewbacca down there, doing who knew what.

She smiled but her attention was turned towards the path. Up the path she went, which now inclined at a steady rate. The path kept going up, and she found that the steps, many broken, were leading to a point between two sets of rock formations. She couldn't see anything but as she walked, something appeared out of her peripheral. She turned and looked towards the top of a ridge maybe fifty yards away.

A white robed figure stood there, a large staff in her hand. Kira nearly stopped but the figure, she couldn't make out the gender at this distance, nor the race. The figure lifted her staff and tilted it so it pointed towards the split between the rock formations. Kira turned to keep walking and she kept on walking. Her legs were beginning to burn. On the other side of her she noticed something and she looked.

A woman, an incredibly beautiful woman sat cross-legged on the ground. No….she was levitating! She wore robes similar to those she had seen on the planet of Illum. Yet they were black leather and skin-tight. The woman had red hair and Kira nearly stopped. Without opening her eyes, the levitating Jedi pointed towards the same location.

Kira kept walking, the music rising to a crescendo in her mind. She came to a part of the path that leveled out, and no more then fifteen feet before her was a figure, wearing light tan robes. The figure was turned away from her. The figure's shoulders rounded as if noticing her. Kira held the lightsaber and placed it before her, ready to activate it if needed be.

The figure turned to her, and she saw the beard and the face of a man. He lifted his hands and grabbing the edges of the cowl of his robe, lifted it. Kira's eyes went wide as she recognized his face. It was….it was….

She held the lightsaber hilt out to him, the igniter pointed towards her. She looked at him, almost pleadingly to take the lightsaber. He looked from her face, down to the saber and back up at her face. He made no move to take it from her and took a deep breath that he let out with a mixture of emotions. Luke Skywalker, the Grand Master of the Jedi Order, and hero of hers, stood before her.

"Who are you?"


	22. Epilogue Part I: Mid-Credit Scenes

**Epilogue Part I: Mid-Credit Scenes**

 **First Order Intelligence Headquarters, Hays Minor, First Order Space**

The woman stood at attention as the Commander stepped into the room. She knew this man only by reputation, never having actually seen him. He was a ghost, no one even knew his true face. He used refined holographic masking to hide who he truly was. No cameras had ever managed to take a shot of him. Nor had any recording devices ever picked him up. The only name they had for him was The Commander, leader of

Simply put: unless he _wanted_ you to see or hear him, you didn't.

Even now as she stood at attention, heels sharply clicked together, chest out, shoulder back, eyes forward, she didn't know if the face of the man with the missing eye replaced by an infrared holo-reader was actually his true face.

"You have an assignment Agent 700," the man said. His voice was haggard and harsh. Again though, she had no way of knowing if this was his real voice or a fake one. "One from Supreme Leader Snoke himself."

The Supreme Leader? She felt only the smallest thrill in her chest at the news that she was personally chosen by the Supreme Leader. The war was well-underway and even with the destruction of Starkiller Base and the lose of the Galaxy Gun, four fleets were now occupying the ruined systems of the New Republic and the Republic military was reeling from the attacks at other sectors.

"Someone sold out the First Order to the Republic," the Commander said, anger in his voice. "It was this selling out that allowed the Galaxy Gun to be destroyed. The New Republic was weakened but not as much as the Top Brass wanted."

"My mission is to hunt down the traitor?" Agent 700 asked.

"We had Commander Poe Dameron in our grasp," the man curled his hand in a fist, his voice continuing to be raspy. "Yet he suddenly vanished from his holding cell on the _Finalizer._ We believe that whoever let him out is the traitor. But, we know the location of the Resistance Divison. You will embed yourself in the Resistance. Your cover must be maintained. You will send regular updates on a weekly basis and send communications directly to me of New Republic movements. If you find the traitor, do not engage. We will use him to our advantage."

Agent 700 nodded her affirmation of the order and was handed a PADD. She loved the idea of double agents. She looked at the info on it, showing her name, and occupation. She didn't know much about the skills that was attached to this woman, but she could learn quickly. That had always been her specialty.

"You know the protocol if you are made," the Commander said.

The protocol was simple. All agents of the First Order's Intelligence Division had inhibitor chips in their brains. It was activated by pressing the base of the skull with all pointer the ring and middle finger. It would demolish their memory portion of the brains, erasing all memory of their lives prior to that moment.

"I will not fail you, Commander," the Agent said, pressing the pad against the top of her leg as she straightened to attention.

He said nothing as he stared at her. It was more effective than any stated threat that he could have made. If she failed the Commander, there would be no escape.

 **Imperial War Council Chamber, Imperial Palace, Byss**

Director Redd Wessel walked through the palace corridors, his hurried pace making courtiers, aides and officers step briskly to the side. Redd Wessel was the Galactic Empire's Director of the Imperial Security Bureau. From his command post on the outwardly ancient _Imperial-II_ Class Star Destroyer _Emperor's Revenge,_ he received intelligence from agents on the most advanced technical systems in the galaxy.

As he stepped up to the War Council Chamber located in the southern tier of the Imperial Palace on Byss, a black armored Imperial Guard, completely different than the red robed Imperial Guards one general met, stepped up to him, baring his path with a fall of his vibro-ax.

"The Emperor is in council at the moment," Carnor Jax, Lord Commander of the Imperial Guard told him.

"I must speak with the Emperor immediately," Wessel said.

"He is not to be disturbed," Jax repeated.

"Tell him I have important news that cannot wait," Wessel ordered. When the Lord Commander refused to budge, his ebony visor reflecting Wessel's, he snarled. "If you make him wait for the news I have to deliver, I promise you, you losing your job would be the least of worries."

Carnor Jax did not move away but he raised a hand and motioned to his side with two fingers held up. A red garbed guard stepped up to his side. He issued some orders in a language that was a battle language known only to the guard. Even Wessel didn't know it. The red guard stepped back, his cloak swirling behind him as he moved to the door of the chamber with his force pike held high.

The door opened and he entered. No more than a minute later, out stepped an Imperial Knight. The Emperor was always under constant threat from assassination from both the Republic and nobles of the Empire so he had two group of guards. The Royal Guards and the Imperial Knights. On a daily basis he switched which ones would be in the rooms he was in and which ones were on the outside.

The left face of the man had been blasted off years back, and now it was replaced by a cybernetic face and eye. He raised his hand and motioned the Director forward. He was the Commander of the Knights, Hogram Chalk.

"The Emperor will allow him to enter," he said. His vocal box had been damaged so it had been replaced by a cybernetic one, making him sound like he was underwater at all times.

Carnor Jax shifted the vibro-ax and stepped aside. Wessel ran a hand to press the creases in his white tunic as he stepped past the Lord Commander. Reaching the door, he stepped thorough behind the Imperial Knight. As he walked in, he saw the Imperial High Command gathered around a holographic table with a holographic map of the galaxy. It showed real-time the current status of worlds, and which factions currently owned them.

Supreme Commander of the Military, Grand Admiral Pealleon was in the room, next to the second in command of the military Grand Admiral Danetta Pitta. Grand Moff Jazen stood at the right side of the table. On the left side stood Chamberlain Derra of the Imperial Council.

"….Seventh and Ninth fleets will launch as soon as the launch date hits," Grand Admiral Pealleon said from directly across the table. He glanced only briefly at the ISB Director before returning back to the Emperor. "Their Supreme Commander has told me they want us to maintain the same time-table, so in two days we'll launch our attacks into New Republic space."

"Very good," the Emperor said. His back was turned to the ISB Director, and his hands were placed firmly on the table as he surveyed the current situation. "Director Wessel, I expected you here soon."

"Forgive my absence, Your Majesty," the Director said. "I received a report that I had to confirm and I wanted to make absolutely sure that I was a hundred percent accurate before delivering the news to you, sire."

"Deliver it then," the Emperor commanded, not turning to him.

Wessel cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably. He really didn't know that delivering the news with so many people present was wise. The Emperor was a man who despite his many strengths, was a man given to outbursts of rage when he got news that displeased him. And an outburst infront of so many witnesses would be bad politically.

"Majesty," he said, trying to convince him without strictly saying what was on his mind. "I think we should speak privately."

"Does it look like I have time for such nonsense?" Fel demanded, waving his hand towards the table. He didn't turn to face the ISB director. "Whatever you need to say, can be said in front of the whole War Council."

"I really don't think is a wise idea…." Wessel began but he was cut off.

"Your Emperor has told you to speak," Grand Moff Jazen said, her voice cutting like a blast of icy wind. "So speak and be done with it!"

Wessel closed his eyes. Fine, he was going to have to word this carefully.

"Our Intelligence ships have been observing the activities of travel from the Hosnian System as you know," Wessel said, "Up to a week before the attack on the system. There was much traffic towards the capitol system. No ships left the system prior to the attack on the capitol of the Republic or even during it."

"Good," the Emperor said satisfied. "I do not want more Republic politicians rallying the people."

" _Sire_ ," Wessel stressed the word. "No vessels left the system. None towards other Republic systems. None towards the First Order. _And none to the Empire_."

The Emperor went silent, and he slowly stood to his full height. He turned slowly to the ISB Director, and his face and eyes showed that he comprehended. His eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Are you certain?" he asked quietly.

"I would not report it unless I was absolutely certain," he replied.

Jagged Fel turned to face the table. He did not turn to face it but stared directly ahead. His hands came behind his back and Wessel could see he was grabbing something behind it. He really hoped that the Emperor wouldn't do something stupid infront of the war council.

"Vacate the room," he said. His voice brooked no room for argument.

"Sire," the Grand Moff said in surprised disbelief. She either hadn't picked up on the Emperor's sudden mood shift or she was choosing to ignore it. "We are in middle of a council of war. We need to….."

"The Emperor has told you that he wants the room vacated," Director Wessel reminded her, mocking her with her a variation of her own words.

The group slowly began to shuffle towards the door. Even the Knights moved towards the door, ushering people out who lagged behind. Wessel was the first out of the door and the last council member who was out before the Imperial Knights was the Grand Moff. She immediately bee-lined for Wessel, her face a scowl.

"Great!" she snapped. "Look what you did! Why the Seven Hells did you make that report?"

"Enough, Jazen," Chamberlain Derra said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I am sure he is about to explain it to us."

Wessel suddenly realized that the entire war council had gathered around him. They were all looking at him, with a mixture of annoyance, bewilderment and outright hostility. Even the Imperial Knights had gathered around him, looking quizzically at him.

"Indeed," Grand Admiral Pealleon said. He was among the bewildered. "I am sure the reason is a good one, but please explain to us so we can understand. What was it about your report that made him dismiss us all? Surely he is glad that Hosnian Prime was wiped out."

"The Prince was on Hosnian Prime," he explained, and the entire mood of the group suddenly sobered in understanding.

* * *

Jagged Fel held the lightsaber hilt in his hands. When he had been a child, his parents had realized that he had gifts. Gifts that were similar to the abilities that the Jedi had possessed. Instead of reporting him to the Inquisitors as was their duty, they had bought Jedi training manuals off the black market. They had even paid an exorbant amount to Jedi-artifact collector Grakkus the Hutt, for a Jedi Holocron and a Jedi lightsaber. He had been careful with how he went about studying.

The holocron had belonged to a Jedi named Master Zeb Hordonal, a Zabrak who hailed from the time of the destruction of the Sith. The lightsaber Grakkus had sworn had belonged to Jedi Master Aayla Secure, yet he had highly doubted it. Either way, he had been just as careful with how he practiced the Force as he had been in its study.

It helped his already exceptional piloting skills. Helped his already massive intuition. He had made sure to never allow the Force to make him too fanciful at anything.

Yet now, as Emperor, he had taken time to develop his skills. When he was elected emperor twenty years ago, he had invited Luke Skywalker to come to Byss. The Jedi Master had not yet begun training students, but had used the Emperor as a trial. To see if he could indeed pass on the lessons he had learned. He had made that clear to Fel, and he had understood. For three months he had studied with the Jedi Master and by the end, they were both confident. Fel in his abilities as a Force user, and Skywalker as a teacher.

The lightsaber blade sprung to life in his hands. Pure white. No colors tinted the blade. Rage filled him as he looked at the blade.

"No!" he screamed and he slashed down, cutting through the table. "No!" He cut down again, this time completely severing the table in half. "No!" his blade slashed, cutting the back off of the chair that he had been standing next to. Again and again he screamed "No!" and slashed something. Statues, flags of the empire, chairs, walls. Even the floor.

Before he knew it, the whole room was filled with smoke that rose from destroyed tables and chairs. He fell to his knees, dropping the lightsaber to the floor. His rage drowned everything in his mind. There was only anger and hatred at what had been taken from him.

"Ah…." A voice said from a corner. A corner that hid an antechamber. The voice was gravelly and filled with malevolence. "I see. You have been betrayed, my Emperor."

"Not only have I lost my….. _son_ ," he found the last word hard to speak. "But my unborn grandchild as well. You….you told me to trust them."

"I told you to trust their self-interest, my Emperor," the voice said. "When it benefitted them, they extended the hand of friendship to you. Do you think it was mere chance they fired when they did? Snoke is wise and he does nothing without purpose."

Fel lifted his hand to his face and pressed it to it. If only it could have hide the pain inside him. The man who spoke to him remained in the corner, not moving towards him. Fel could watch the mismatched color eyes watching him intently.

"What must I do to make this right?" Fel said.

"The Sith teach that chaos is how the Dark Side manifests itself," the figure said. "In many ways, Luke Skywalker was Sith when instead of killing Vader, he approached him and redeemed him. It was not the Jedi way, to save a Sith, but chaos. Be like Luke Skywalker now, my Emperor. Do exactly the last thing anyone would ever expect from you."

 ** _Freedom Cantina,_ Nabat, Ryloth**

"Jacen Syndulla," the middle-aged Twi'lek woman said, pouring him a drink and pushing it towards him. "I haven't seen you in many moons. Where have you been keeping yourself boy?"

"I went to do a pilgrimage to The Villages," the human-Twi'lek hybrid human said.

He looked like a human in most aspects of his physiology. The main differences were his ears, which were rounder than most humans, and he had extremely dark green hair. Calling him 'boy' wasn't exactly true. He was thirty-three years old, born a year after the Liberation of Lothal. Yet compared to the older twi'lek woman, who was nearly twice his age, he could understand her need to call him boy.

"I remember that dreadful night, even though I had only been a small child," the bartender said. "Many Twi'leks go the The Villages to honor those who were killed by the cowardly Separatists the night before Mace Windu and Cham Syndulla stormed the city. Although, one is left to wonder if it wouldn't have been so bad, for the Separatists to win the Clone Wars, considering what arose from the ashes."

Jacen said nothing, instead drinking from the cup. He liked Numa, she had so much history to her. She was also one of the few who really had known his mother. To say nothing about his grandfather. In many ways, she was like an aunt to him.

His mother, General Hera Syndulla, had died during the Battle of Jakku. She had been commanding the ground assault from the _Ghost_ against Gallius Rax and his splinter Empire. Alone, orphaned, he had been sent to Sabine Wren, who had finally started along the road to recovery. Aunt Sabine's mind had snapped during the Third Battle of Lothal. To see so many of her allies die during the failed attempt to liberate the planet from Thrawn, including the last ditch desperate effort by her friend Ezra Bridger which had resulted in the _Chimera_ to be shot into hyperspace, had broken her mind.

Ahsoka had helped heal her, finding her years later living in Ezra's old home. In her grief-induced insanity, Sabine had even cut her hair to resemble Ezra, who she had never told her true feelings. Ahsoka had been the one to pick up Jacen and together, the Bendu-Jedi and the boy Jacen had helped Sabine emerge from the darkness of her mind. Jacen had been with them when they had found Ezra Bridger in the Unknown Regions.

Ezra has taught young Jacen the ways of the Force before they joined Luke Skywalker's New Jedi Order. Numa had taken a special interest in the grandson of Cham and had even put him in her will. The cantina would go to Jacen when she died. But all that said, he honestly wasn't sure he agreed with her belief that the Confederacy of Independent Systems should have won the Clone Wars. Not with Count Dooku as it's public leader.

"When did you get back to Nabat?" Numa asked him as he put the drink down, having drunk half of it.

"I came straight here when I got back," Jacen answered. "So just a few minutes ago."

"So then you will be leaving Ryloth soon?" she asked, turning to fill the order or a repeat customer who had just walked into the bar.

"Why?" Jacen asked, frowning. He glanced back and forth, and even reached out with the Force. He was satisfied by the visual and Force confirmation that there were no spies for the First Order. "Master Skywalker hasn't sent Code 4 to us."

Code 4 was the Code Master Skywalker had created when he ordered all the Jedi to go into hiding to escape the Jedi purge that the First Order was conducting across the galaxy. It was the Code that would be sent to summon the Jedi out of their hiding places and rally them to fight.

"Odd," Numa frowned. The repeat customer sat, a fat Twi'lek male with only a single lekku. "I supposed that the commencement of the war would have resulted in you all being called to fight."

"War?" Jacen frowned, "What war?"

Numa looked at him surprised but snapped her fingers as she realized that he had been on pilgrimage. Pilgrims never took electronic devices that linked to the outside world. She quickly explained the start of the war between the First Order and the Republic. She said that the rumor were that the Infinite Empire and the Galactic Empire would rally to the side of the First Order and take back the worlds lost to them.

"So," he muttered, "The war that Master Skywalker predicted has begun."

It was strange that he had not felt this war. Especially with the amount of destruction she talked about. He had no doubt that Ryloth would remain neutral. Ryloth had not joined the Republic, stating it wished to be left alone. That did not stop many twi'leks from holding government positions as they were allied with the Republic. Yet that alliance he was certain would not make them fight except to protect themselves.

He lifted his drink and a loud confrontation was heard from the back of the cantina. That was not unusual in her cantina. Numa ran a clean establishment, but that didn't stop fights from breaking out. Jacen glanced back and saw that the confrontation was between two men and a woman. It was clear that the yellow and white striped Zabrak and dark-skinned human were making unwanted advances on the Twi'lek woman. She was completely red skinned. He waited to see if anyone would move to help her.

"Time to be a Jedi," he rolled his eyes, lifting his cup and finishing it.

Rising to his feet he walked over to the table that they were sitting at. The Zabrak saw him moving towards them and glared at him. Yet he didn't take his hand off the woman.

"What's your problem?" the Zabrak asked and his human companion turned to face him as well.

"I think the lady has made it clear that she doesn't want to be bothered," Jacen told them. He wasn't a tall person, nor was he physical imposing. He hoped though that the fact that he was confronting these bullies would be enough to make them stop.

"Why should we care what she thinks?" the Zabrak demanded.

"Yeah," the human agreed, nodding his large head in agreement with his buddy. "Slaves have no right."

Jacen's eyes flicked to the neck of the woman. A duranium neck collar wound around her neck. The very sight revolted him. His mother had fought and died to free the galaxy from the scourge of slavery.

"The New Republic banned slavery," he reminded them.

"Look where we are!" the human snorted, waving his hand around the cantina. "This ain't the New Republic. This is Ryloth, and slavery is still legal here."

That much was true. Twi'leks by their very culture encouraged slavery. The type of slavery that the Twi'leks practiced was more of indentured servitude. Twi'leks in debt would attach themselves to wealthy families and be slaves until the debt was paid off. Women twi'leks especially enjoyed being slaves. According to Twi'lek law, a wife was a slave. Girlfriends were slaves.

Technically, his mother had been a slave to the Jedi Knight Kanan Jarrus, even if she never called herself that. It didn't matter that they respected each other and had been equals in each other's eyes. It was Twi'lek law. Jacen honestly couldn't understood it.

"Let the woman go," Jacen said again.

"Or what?" the Zabrak snarled. "Who do you think you are to tell us…."

His voice trailed off as Jacen pulled the lightsaber from where it hid and slammed it on the table. Both men looked at the lightsaber hilt, which Jacen was proud of. The lightsaber hilt resembled images he had seen of Master Yoda's walking cane. They looked from it and up to Jacen, fear in their eyes. Letting go of her from both side, they scooted out of both sides of the booth, stood and ran to the door.

"You alright?" Jacen asked, lifting his hand.

"I…..you shouldn't have done that," the woman looked down, her face deepening red in embarrassment. "I was in the wrong, Master Jedi. I should have resisted my masters."

"Nonsense," Jacen shook his head. With a flick of his hand, the collar snapped in two and fell on either side of her. "Go and be free."

He turned and headed to the door, putting the lightsaber back in his loose robes he wore. Nodding towards Numa, who rolled her eyes at his insistence at interfering, he left the cantina and walked into the street. It was a hot day on Ryloth, hotter than usual. Pulling the cowl of his robe over his head, he began walking down the street.

"Master Jedi!" a voice suddenly called him and he turned back to see the Twi'lek woman running after him.

Try as he might, he couldn't help taking an appraising look at her. She wore a tube top that was strapless and ebony metallic. It was more of an undergarment than an actual top. She wore a black leather dress that was cut into several long strips of leather that hung from her waist. She also wore almost knee-high black boots. It was instantly apparent what services she had performed for her masters.

"Yes?" he asked, focusing on her face. He had always found Twi'leks attractive, and he really hoped it had nothing to do with his mother being one. That would have easily landed him in a shrink's office.

"I….I have nowhere to go," she said, reaching up to rub her arms. "Can I….can I stay with you? At least until I contact my family? They are on the southern continent."

"Sure," he said, waving her towards him. She looked grateful as she stepped up to him and he put a hand on her bare shoulder. He was a few inches taller than her and he shortened his stride as he walked, allowing her ease with keeping up to him.

"Thank you, Master Jedi," she said.

"Please," he smiled, "I'm no master. My name is Jacen Syndulla."

Her eyes grew wide. "I had no idea!" she said sheepishly. "I'm Lethan."

Lethan was a type of Twi'lek, not a name. But he wasn't going to push it. Off they walked towards his home, where she would be safe until she had contacted her family.

* * *

Lethan stroked the round face of Jacen Syndulla. In a word, he had been great. She had rarely been with a partner that had been so vigorous and skilled in the act of love-making. She was very skilled in seduction, and even a formidable Jedi could be seduced. With a little bit of help, of course.

Slowly she rose from the bed, the blanket falling from her naked body. Jacen made a soft grunting noise as his head turned in his sleep. No mater how vigorous h had been, she had worn him down and was the last one standing as it were.

Softly, she padded over to where his shower was in his small home. It was a sonic shower, the standard type on Ryloth. Water was scarce on Ryloth and even though it was nowhere as satisfying as feeling hot water dripping down her body, she was glad for how quiet it was. She pushed a small button to turn it on, and then twisted a dial above the on and off button to turn it up full-blast.

The sonic waves hit her so hard that she nearly collapsed. She threw her hands against the wall, allowing the massive pressure to scrub her clean.

Or, more precisely, to rid herself of the paint on her body.

The red paint that zig-zagged her body began to evaporate, the sonic power basically demolishing it, like smoke. And where the paint left, black tattoos rose in its place. She grimaced at the pain, but relished in it, watching the mask fall away. And as it fell, her face, which had been so peaceful, became filled with hatred and loathing. She had patterned her tattoos off Darth Maul, a pretender to the title 'Sith'.

Ten minutes later, the sonic shower turned off and she was left, scrubbed clean of what had hide her. Turning, she exited the shower, and faced the man that lay sleeping. A sneer curled her face. _Jedi…._

His face creased in a frown as his subconscious connection with the Force alerted him to the danger that approached. Yet, the paint on her body had small poisons that she had activated. He was drugged, and it waited until he was asleep before fully taking effect. She moved towards the bed and climbed onto it, straddling him as she moved up to his stomach.

She placed her hands on both sides of his temple, and with a few muttered words, a red glow began to appear between the hands and the temple. Then, it solidified into a stream that wavered back and forth and red sparkles began to emerge from his skin and surged towards her.

She gasped in pleasure as the sparkles touched her skin and entered. His face began to twist in pain as the very life force was being drained from him. The veins bulged underneath his skin and soon were a crisscross of black and green. For several minutes she drained the very life force from him. Not the midichlorians, only one knew how to remove those from a person and add it to their own.

With a gasp Jacen's eyes snapped awake and panic was in them as he realized her couldn't move. She saw his eyes and smirked.

"I am surprised you are awake _, Jedi_ ," she spat the name like a curse. "But a pleasant one. I want you to see my face, the Sith who killed you. Drained you of your life energy and added it to my own, xtending my years and beauty by another decade. I waited in this stupid city for two months waiting for you to emerge. I had to pretend to be a slave to _bounty hunter scum._ But it was worth it."

Deep gasps escaped Jacen and his chest rattled. He was close now. One more minute and he would be dead. His death was serving a higher cause. To sow chaos throughout the galaxy as one more Jedi left it. If the death ensured her own continuation, so be it. The Dark Lord of the SIth would not begrudge her.

"Before you die," she hissed, "I will let you know who you have the honor of being killed by. I am Darth Talon, of the One Sith."

She let go of the link as he began to spasm in his death throes. As he flailed on the bed, his life expiring, she stood, and stretching out her hand, summoned her clothing to her. She dressed in no great rush, enjoying the sound of his suffering. She had only two great loves, sex and death.

As she moved to the door, she claimed her trophy for the latter. The wooden lightsaber hilt.

"A fine addition to my collection," she said, and pushing the door, stepped out and let it shut on the last exhale of the Jedi Knight, Jacen Syndulla and the end of the bloodlines of Caleb Dume and Syndulla.


	23. Epilogue Part II: End Credit Scene

**Epilogue II: End-Credit Scene**

 **Leena-Sa Prima, First Order Capitol World, Unknown Regions**

Jacen Skywalker felt cold as he was roughly pushed down the massive corridor. His twin sister walked next to him, hanging her head down. Her hair fell in dirty clumps, the stink of weeks without bathing strong on her. Jacen knew he must not be an Alderaanian rose either.

He wasn't cold because of the corridor. Actually, the entire place was rather warm. The facility was built within the heart of an active caldera volcano. Any other place, he would have probably considered himself well-done. Heck, he didn't know what had been hotter, Jakku or this place.

But that didn't stop him from feeling cold. A cold malevolence spread through these corridors. The walls oozed of it. His father had once taken him to Dagobah and placed him outside of the dark side cave on the planet. Jacen had been cold then, but the coldness had been like he was walking through a cold sprinkler system, such as the ones that had been on Corellia near his uncle and aunt's mountain house.

This on the other hand was like cold slime, making him feel like he was wading through a thick deluge of cold muck. He wondered his this had been how his father had felt when he had faced the Emperor?

"No," Jaina said, her voice dead. All the life had seemed to be drained from her in this terrible place. "Father, what he felt with the Emperor had been old, calculating. Like a decaying corpse. This…..this is worse."

"No talking," one of the guards snapped and slapped her hard across the back of her head with a plastoid glove.

The guard were dressed like similar stormtroopers. Yet their armor was completely black, and a single red light appeared from the visor of their helmets, flowing back and forth from one side to the other. Jacen had already tried using the Force on them…but for some reason, the Force seemed to be unable to affect them. Force Push did nothing. Force Pull was a lost cause. As for a Jedi Mind Trick….Jaina had described their minds like barren landscapes. So barren she had feared to get lost in them.

They reached the end of the large corridor, which was large enough for an old AT-AT walker to move with ease if they needed, they arrived at two stone doors, with polished ebony surfaces. Jacen saw their reflections in the polished stone, and nearly stopped in alarm. The reflections were not human, but monstrous.

 _It's the Dark Side,_ Jaina's voice entered his mind. _These doors…..they come from Moraband._

The doors swung open and into a massive domed room, with thick window walls that held back the lava that flowed around the room in a furious glow. Jacen and Jaina were shoved roughly in and the doors slammed shut behind them, the sound almost mocking. Jacen felt like he was in a snow-globe, his mother had loved them, only this one, instead of a nice view, was surrounded by fire.

"Come in," an ancient voice called to them. "Don't be shy. How long I have looked forward to meeting the children of Skywalker. Come, children."

The twins wrapped their fingers together and tightly clamped their hands together. Slowly they walked, and looking around, they saw eight red figures standing in a circle around the chamber. A few tall purple robed figures stood next to a large orb and as they approached it, which was roughly in the middle of the room, Jacen could see a red mist inside, with white lights throbbing in it, clustered like fish-eggs.

 _I am one with the Force, the Force is with me,_ Jacen thought and Jaine started to repeat it as well. Confidence grew in this den, where the Dark Side presence was the absolute strongest. _I am one with the Force, the Force is with me. I am one with the Force, the Force is with me. I am one with the Force…._

"…the Force is with me." The voice finished their mantra, breaking the concentration the twins had. "I did not realize that Master Skywalker had told his students the mantra of the Guardians of the Whills. Ah…..no. I sense Lor San Tekka in this matter. He honored the Force, even if he was no Force user."

Their eyes were drawn towards a throne. A massive throne. A figure in black robes with long strings of silver thread running through it saw on the seat. His head was bald, and massive gaps appeared in both cheeks. His head was cloven, as if he had been cut by lightsaber or someone had slashed it with an ancient sword. Even sitting they could tell his twisted form.

"Tell me," the figure said, leaning forward in his chair with a horrid smile. "What can you do for me? How will you serve, me?"

"We…..we never will serve you!" Jacen declared. His young voice wavered and cracked a bit but he got the words out.

"We will see," he said, leaning even further. "We will see."

To be continued…..


	24. Behind the Scenes

**Behind the Scenes**

When I first saw _The Force Awakens_ on opening night _,_ I'll admit, I was blown away. Sure, by the mid-point nothing was surprising me, and I could call every plot point before they happened. Yet despite being unoriginal, the nostalgia factor really had me on the edge of my seat. I saw it twice in theaters, and both times I left satisfied.

Then time passed, and I really began to think about the movie. I listened to all these podcasters and youtubers praising this film and honestly, I started feeling that something was amiss. What I didn't realize at the time was that these people weren't acknowledging a simple fact that finally became clear to me roughly a month after it opened: it _wasn't original._

It wasn't even the story by itself that wasn't original. The look of characters felt like they were taken from the characters of the Original Trilogy and fashioned to look like a girl's clothes (in the case of Rey wearing a Luke Skywalker type of outfit) or Finn basically wearing a Han Solo type of clothing only browner. All the visuals had the exact seem feel as ANH.

I started seeing all these videos popping up from people who hadn't been fooled by the nostalgia and they made even more sense in putting into words what I had only started realizing had been subconsciously troubling to me. Rey's infinite and rapid power progression which was only made worse by _The Last Jedi's_ novelizations official explanation on why she was so powerful. Finn's almost immediate defection from the First Order. Starkiller Base. The absence of a New Republic military for the most part.

Within five months, even if I could sit down, watch the movie and have fun (even two years+ I still enjoy watching the film), the problems only compound with every watching. No stranger to fan-fics, I began to imagine different ways of fixing the story.

Mid-point of last year, roughly around May, I really began thinking about what if I made a fan-fic on it.

Basically, two versions of the story arose. One was a movie that basically took the elements of the story and tweaked them. One which saw Finn over the course of a few weeks and watching the torture of Poe only then switching sides. One that saw Rey as a galley girl aboard the _Falcon_ but dreaming of being a pilot instead of just a dishwasher. One that saw Poe Dameron supposed to be picked up on Jakku after receiving the map to Luke Skywalker, only to be captured and BB-8 to deliver it. One where Starkiller Base was simply a staging point for a First Order invasion force into the New Republic and not a supped-up Death Star.

Even though I had this version of a story in mind, I wasn't going to write it. No, I was going to hold off for _The Last Jedi._ Rian Johnson had done good Sci-Fi films in the past, such as the crazy _Looper_ movie and I had heard he was a fan of the Prequels. So I felt like holding off until I had seen the TLJ and only then would I create the fan-fic…. _if_ it was a bad film.

And…here we are! The fact you have read a 200+ page fanfic shows you my opinion on the film.

The second version really didn't arise until after I watched TLJ. In prep for this story, I bought the _Art of the Force Awakens, The Last Jedi_ and _Rogue One_ books. Honestly, the AotFA is the only really interesting one, but grabbing it, I used it to determine ideas for the fanfic. Sam Skyler and Kira were the names of the original names for Rey and Finn. The _Warhammer_ class dreadnought was a piece of amazing concept art of a massive conical ship slamming into the surface of a planet.

 **The Republic**

The first thing to cover is the Republic. The New Republic in canon….is, well…..sith spit. In canon, Mon Mothma scaled back the military by 90% after the surrender of the Empire. The _Raddus_ that Leia is on in _The Last Jedi_? That's a GCW ship that's merely been upkept. They rotated planets on a yearly basis and the Republic was lead by political parties with no real leader.

I decided to keep the ideas of the canon pretty much alive for the Republic. The difference lay between the position of First Senator and the capitol worlds. In the book _Bloodlines_ , Leia gets onboard with the idea of creating a position of First Senator to put the rest of the senators into line. In this story, not only have they succeeded, but they've also decided that the capitol world will be the home world of the First Senator as long as they serve their five years term.

I didn't have the military so drastically cut back, which is a silly idea.

One thing the reader will notice, especially if they are Expanded Universe aka Legends fans, is the names of Borsk Fey'lya and Gar Stazi. These are two prominent characters from those books and comics. Borsk Fey'lya served as Chancellor of the New Republic until his death taking out a massive portion of a Yuzzhan Vong invasion fleet and Gar Stazi was a military leader of a Galactic Alliance resistance against a resurgent Empire, basically he's a more competent version of Leia from canon.

I love the idea of blending the best elements of Legends and Canon together to make a much more effective story.

 **The Empire**

In canon, the Empire post-Palpatine basically vanishes after a single year. You are trying to convince me that the faction that held supreme over the entire known galaxy for two decades completely collapses after a single year? That Mas Amedda, a respected leader who was left-hand to Palpatine, had absolutely no respect by the Empire?

No way, Jose. In this story, I kept the Galactic Empire around, even though much greatly weakened. It's currently at the state that the Imperial Remnant was in Legends, only holding the Deep Core and Core with planets seceding to the Republic at a growing rate. Jagged Fel did become Emperor in Legends, but he had no Force powers. However, his descendant, Roan Fel did. Roan Fel is one of my favorite Legends characters so I decided to make the Fel Dynasty a Force one, especially since his daughter was as well.

Trajan Fel, the Crown Prince of the Empire, was a completely original character for the story, as was his fiancé Jan Zsinji. I named Jan after Jan Ors, the lover of Kyle Katarn.

There is a splinter faction named the Infinite Empire. Those who used to attend the Dark Sith Lords message board site will remember it as the Empire we were a part of. Yours truly was the Admiral of the Sith Imperial 9th Fleet. The emperor of that Splinter Empire, Adol Ha, is a character from other fanfics I've done. He's always been a leader in the Imperial Remnant, and in my _Heirs of the Empire_ fanfic series, was the man who was supposed to become Emperor at the insistence of Luke Skywalker in an attempt to end the Galactic Civil War, since he respected him.

 **The First Order**

I like the First Order, at least what we saw prior to TLJ, despite the lack of context and detail. I wanted a much better look into the First Order. Their training, how their troopers lived. How they were assigned new duties.

One of the things I really wanted to do was explore what their war plans were. What their end goal was. Why they wanted to go to war when they had a nice gig in the Unknown Regions. It was a reason why having the Galactic Empire still around was important. It made their war a twisted self-righteous war, a crusade in their own eyes to restore Palpatine's vision. Their official reason for war was to rescue their Galactic Empire brothers and sisters from the tyrannical New Republic which is seen as a bully to the Galactic Empire.

I also wanted to do away with the Death Star-esque Starkiller Base. Instead, I resurrected the Galaxy Gun from the Dark Empire series and combined it with the Sun Crusher from the _Jedi Academy_ trilogy. That way it not only did both, and instead of blowing up planets, it basically made them desolate and would allow for military bases to be constructed. This is another thing from my fanfics that I love using. The idea of dead of dying worlds being used as bases. Zarnoth is such a place, which has been seen in my _Heirs of an Empire, Jedi Warrior Trilogy_ and my _Darth Plaquies_ series.

The snow base at the beginning of the story, the one with the TIE Interceptors? That comes from a concept art of Starkiller Base, which had a stone tower citadel and volcanoes in the background.

It also allowed me a chance to add more Legends characters as well. The War Council scenes with Snoke, Kylo Ren and Hux when they are sitting around that conference table? Every single person on that council appear in the book _Darksaber_ as the warlords that Natasi Daala murder during the scene where she takes over the Remnant.

I also got a chance to explore new worlds in the Unknown Regions. Leena-Sa Prima is a completely new world. Snoke's throne room being in a volcano is a mixture of his Last Jedi throne room and the concept art for Palpatine's throne room for ROTJ being beneath the crust of the imperial capitol planet.

 **The Jedi Order**

Luke basically being unable to find any Jedi who survived the Clone Wars makes one role their eyes and that he only collected 12 students? That lines up with Legends but he was obviously a very terrible teacher. Here, we add a Jedi Order that secretly has hundreds of members, because Luke has learned the lessons of the past and doesn't want the real numbers to be known.

We also have the idea of them going into hiding as the Purge happens. There is no map to Luke Skywalker, which is a rather dumb idea. Especially since the whole reason for the map seems to be dropped in TLJ. Why leave a map if you don't want to be found?

No, instead it's the idea that Jedi will be able to show where the location of Luke is. The idea behind Finn's turn starting once he sees Jacen and Jaina being tortured comes from concept art of a Jedi strapped to a chair with a Stomtrooper watching.

 **The Sith**

So, we bring back the Sith, Darth Talon who uses seduction to kill. It allowed me the chance to bring in Jacen Syndulla, who obviously I started writing before Season 4 of _Rebels_ had finished airing. But Darth Talon's seduction and murder of a Jedi was always going to happen and be basically the end of the story. But it was originally going to be a dark-skinned bald human Jedi.

Some have questioned how the Sith can still be if ROTJ ended the Sith…..well, I'm going to address it in the alternative _The Last Jedi!_

 **Knights of Ren**

I have held a theory that they were once Luke's students for a long time. Even longer than the implications they made in TLJ. So making them such, and including people like Zekk and Tenel Ka, who Kylo Ren's Legends counter-part Jacen Solo knew and ran around with, was a good idea. There was a lot of talk of Kylo Ren supposedly going to Vader's castle in TLJ to complete his training, so I made it their base of operations and where they are trained by the Sith Darth Talon.

 **Rey**

Rey, known as Kira Rey in this story, I wanted her to feel more natural. I didn't want lingering questions over her parentage, and as a fan of the "She's a No One" reveal, I made sure to add her being abandoned. I also wanted her to slowly grow into her Force abilities.

I loved the idea of the lightsaber calling to her and having her ability to see an object's past through the Force be something that both she and Kylo Ren had in common. But to have Anakin Skywalker choosing her as the new Chosen One answered why it call to her.

Her knowing how to pilot the ship coming from her growing up on the Falcon and being adopted by Han also answered that question by showing her being on there for years. And for her to have a destiny that Ben Solo saw and be part of the reason he fell adds a new twist.

I also liked how in TLJ they could communicate over space and time. So added it sooner!

 **Luke Skywalker**

I always felt that Luke should have been the one that the lightsaber jumped out of the snow to his hands during the Starkiller duel. I had a dream a few days prior to TFA where in it, I saw Luke do a Force Repulse similar to The Force Unleashed and take out aa bunch of stormtroopers. Then he stands and says, "I hear you were looking for me."

His standing in the sand chamber comes from concept art where he's supposed to be imprisoned in a cell where sand is always pouring on him. But to make it something that allowed him to mask his presence in the Force was nice.

 **What to expect from _The Last Jedi Alternate Version_**

Expect actual training by Kira and Kylo Ren!

Why there are still Sith in the galaxy if Vader's self-sacrifice ended them. It falls in line with a theory I have and will tie into other fanfics I've done. I made a very subtle hint at it in the scene of Darth Talon murdering Jacen Syndulla.

Luke's being on the island will be explained as not him going to die. He has a purpose on the island with the two other Jedi.

We will see Luke have some amazing fight scenes! Two to be exact.

A shocking twist at the end that I hope will leave everyone stunned.

An actual war between the New Republic and the Imperial factions. There's going to be a really coold twist as well.

A different version of the nighttime scene in Ben's hut at the Academy. And a different version of his fall that I hope makes people happier. Luke did dip into the Dark Side in _Return of the Jedi_ for a while and we'll see that indeed it has always been there in the background, that urge. But he's _not_ going to do what he did in the movie

The spy that is infiltrating the Resistance will be revealed in the next book!

Snoke+Ezra+Luke dynamic will be revealed and it's going to be crazy!

I won't start it until July 1st though. I am soon moving and I also want to focus on my original books that I sell for money. Until then, enjoy and speculate on what could happen in the next book!


End file.
